Forever and For Always
by Cassidy Alice
Summary: Sometimes, Katara and Aang thought that even forever wasn't long enough to enjoy everything life had to offer. Collection of oneshots.
1. Friendship

_A/N: My little sister wanted me to do a collection of oneshots, so here it is! Hope it's alright!_

_Disclaimer: I own nothing and I can't take credit for the title either, which I borrowed from Shania Twain's lovely song of the same name. :)_

* * *

**I. Friendship**

_Amicus optima vitae possessio: A friend is the greatest treasure in life._

_~Latin proverb_

Katara sat outside Iroh's tea shop, letting the night air play with her hair. A crescent moon was sailing across a sky glittering with stars. Absently, Katara let her hand trace circles in the fountain just outside the shop. The water felt cool against her skin and she smiled to herself. From somewhere inside, she could hear Sokka snoring in one of the many guest rooms she and her friends had occupied. She had jokingly told Iroh that after a day of listening to Sokka's snoring, he'd make the Water Tribe warrior sleep outside, but much to her disappointment he the general hadn't. If only he didn't keep me awake half the time, she thought ruefully, as Sokka's snoring grew more pronounced. She smiled at the thought of the others waking up because of Sokka's snoring. Toph would have probably earthbended him clear across the room, but she had had a rather long day and had fallen into a heavy sleep so Katara wasn't surprised to find that the blind earthbender made no comment about Sokka's snoring. Suki and Aang never said anything although Katara swore she saw the Kyoshi warrior telling Sokka to be quieter a few times. Zuko and Mai were a different story. Sometimes, when Katara couldn't sleep and had consequently wandered outside, she had found the two watching the stars or something. Of course they claimed it was Sokka's snoring that kept them up, but she suspected otherwise. She knew that they probably wouldn't do that tonight, though; they had gotten into an argument over something that she couldn't quite remember.

"What are you doing up?"

Katara half turned to see Zuko standing behind her. "Nothing," she answered, turning back and watching the stars again. "I couldn't sleep."

Zuko nodded, taking a seat beside her. "Me neither."

"You sure it wasn't Sokka's snoring that kept you awake," she teased.

Zuko shook his head. "I've been thinking about my argument with Mai."

"Oh."

For a while, neither of them said anything. They just sat in the dark, letting the silence grow around them.

"It seems strange, doesn't it?" Katara said after a while.

"What?" Zuko asked in reply to the vague question.

"This," she said, only confusing the firebender more. "Once, if someone had told me that you'd be on our side, I'd have laughed."

"Oh. I guess I would have too," Zuko said, smiling a little. "I still remember you threatening me. What exactly did you say? It was something about ending my destiny or something along those lines."

Katara laughed. "I remember. I said if you had made one step backward, one slip up, given me one reason to think you might have hurt Aang, you wouldn't have had to worry about your destiny anymore. Because I'd have made sure your destiny ended right then and there, permanently.

Zuko grinned. "Yeah. You know, I actually believed you. That whole speech kind of scared me."

She rolled her eyes. "That was the idea."

"Well, it worked, didn't it? I didn't do anything."

"Until three days before the comet when you attacked Aang because you thought we weren't going to do anything."

"Oh."

"I was seriously thinking of ending your destiny then."

"No you weren't."

Katara just glared at him. "How would you know anyway?"

He shrugged. "I didn't and I still don't. But Aang knows you pretty well. He was right."

"About what?"

"Remember when we went after that Southern Raider?" Zuko asked. Katara nodded. "Well, I got the feeling that in spite of everything he said to get you to change your mind, he knew you wouldn't actually kill the guy."

"I wanted to," Katara said, darkly.

"But you didn't."

"Just because I didn't doesn't mean I can't."

"I know. I was just saying," Zuko said, holding up his hands in defense. "But I still believed you'd keep your promise about ending my destiny even after that whole thing had blown over."

"I would have," Katara admitted.

"I know."

"That thing's still in effect, I hope you know," the waterbender added, wryly. "I could still end your destiny any day of the year."

It took Zuko a minute to realize she was joking. "Suddenly," The young Firelord said. "I'm thankful I'm on your side. If we'd still been enemies, I'd probably have been dead by now."

"What makes you say that?" Katara wondered, tracing patterns in the water again.

Zuko shrugged. "You'd probably have bloodbended me."

Katara frowned. "No, I wouldn't."

"Well you hated me enough back then."

"With good reason too," the waterbender muttered. "Sometimes, Zuko, I still hate you."

"Why? Because I keep dragging Aang to those stupid peace meetings?"

She shook her head. "No. Because you always had good in you but you just never decided to use it. Do you know how much it would have simplified things if you had become good sooner?"

Zuko snorted. "Hey, I barely discovered that there was good in me. If it wasn't for my uncle…"

"Yeah, I know."

Zuko yawned. "Better late than never, right?"

"Yeah, but it still would have helped if you had your little transformation long before Azula planned her coup to take Ba Sing Se."

"Well, like my uncle says, destiny's a funny thing," Zuko said. He sighed. "I never really apologized for that, did I?"

"It wouldn't have made a difference," Katara said, looking at the moon. "I still haven't forgiven you for that."

"Fair enough. I know it probably wasn't easy after that whole battle in the catacombs."

"It was anything but easy. Aang died. He would have stayed dead too, if I had used that spirit water on you."

"But you didn't," Zuko pointed out.

"But I came really close to using it."

"You did?"

Katara nodded. "For a second, I actually felt sorry for you."

"That's odd."

"I'm not totally apathetic like your girlfriend," Katara snapped. "Speaking of which, you'd better work things out with Mai. She's moody enough as it is; I don't want to know what she's like after you two get into a fight."

Zuko sighed. "Yeah, well…"

"What were you guys fighting about anyway?"

He shrugged. "I don't even know anymore."

"Wow."

He scowled at Katara's response. "Sometimes, you're as bad as Sokka."

"It runs in the family. But seriously, you're going to make up with her right?"

"Yeah, of course I will. She's my best friend."

"Really?"

"What?" Zuko demanded, meeting her gaze. "You thought I didn't have any friends?"

"No I didn't. It's just that I never would have guessed Mai was your best friend. I always thought…"

"Well, given everything that's happened, she's the only one who really knows me and who has known me the longest."

"Is she your only friend?"

"What do you think?"

"Just checking," Katara said. "Sometimes I think if it were up to Sokka, we wouldn't be friends. He absolutely refused to let you join us after the invasion."

"From what Aang told me and what you said, neither did you."

"I had a reason."

"Which was what exactly?"

"You captured me and used my mother's necklace to track us down. And in the North Pole, you captured Aang."

Zuko grimaced. "Not my finest moments."

"You can say that again. I'm just glad this stupid war is over."

"Lots of people are."

"I just wish the adventure part didn't have to end."

"I could still chase you guys around the world if you like," Zuko offered. "In my free time, that is."

Katara smiled. "Do that again and I will permanently end your destiny."

They laughed.

"You said you'd do that only if I hurt Aang. But I can chase you any place without hurting anyone."

"Yeah right. What about Mai?" Katara teased.

Zuko shrugged. "I don't know. I don't think she likes me..."

Katara just blinked. "Are you stupid?"

Her question caught him off guard. He hadn't been expecting her to say something like that. "What?"

"Are you stupid?" Katara repeated. "After everything that's happened, you don't think she likes you?"

"I was going to say I don't think she likes me enough to be hurt if I left."

"You _are _stupid," Katara said with conviction.

"How?"

"She stuck with you even after you supposedly dumped her. And even if you're not speaking, she's still with you."

"I don't get your point."

"I can see that," Katara muttered. "She still likes you even if you're a complete idiot who has no idea."

"Thanks," the firebender grumbled.

Katara grinned. "Any time."

"Well," Zuko said, getting up. "I'm going to bed. And maybe I will take your advice and make up with Mai."

"You mean you weren't going to?"

"I was, but when we fight, we usually don't talk for at least couple of days before we make up. It's a weird way to make up, but it works. Although sometimes, I feel like we lose our friendship when we fight."

"You know what they say: A friend is life's greatest treasure."

Zuko grinned. "Has Aang gotten to you? You sound like a monk already."

Katara blushed. "What? Not at all."

Zuko smirked. "Right. Good night, Katara."

He was answered by being soaked in water.

Katara remained outside, wishing someone else would come. She suddenly felt bored without someone to talk to. Her conversation with Zuko had been interesting, though she would have much rather preferred a certain airbender to talk to. Her wish was granted almost immediately.

"Katara? You're still up?"

She turned to find Aang behind her.

"I couldn't sleep," she explained.

"Sokka?" Aang asked, sitting beside her.

"Sokka," she admitted. "And the usual round of insomnia. What about you?"

"Sokka. And Zuko wasn't exactly quiet when he came in. He slipped."

"On what?" Katara laughed.

"Water. According to him, you bent it over him. It was collecting in a puddle and he slipped."

Katara giggled. "That probably was my fault. Oh well."

"What were you two doing up anyway?" Aang wondered.

"Just talking. He seems to think I've suddenly become like you."

Aang raised an eyebrow.

"I said something that apparently sounded like you," Katara explained.

"What?"

"I said I friend is life's greatest treasure and he suddenly thought I sounded like you."

"The monks used to say that every time the little kids got in a fight. I never understood what that meant until…"

"Until?" Katara prodded.

"I went to the Eastern Air Temple," Aang replied, knowing his answer wouldn't make much sense to Katara.

"I didn't understand until after Ba Sing Se," She said quietly, gazing at the city that spread out before them. Everything was dark except for the occasional lamplight that flickered on and off in an unknown house.

Aang grinned. "A friend is life's greatest treasure, especially when they're the person you love."

Katara just smiled. "True. But you already knew that."

* * *

_Thanks for reading! _

_~Cassidy Alice_


	2. Addiction

_Disclaimer: I don't own ATLA_

* * *

**II. Addiction**

_It's like I can't breathe  
It's like I can't see anything  
Nothing but you  
I'm addicted to you_

~Kelly Clarkson, Addicted

One week. She repeats the words in her head over and over again until they begin to sound strange. One week, seven days, one hundred sixty eight hours, eleven thousand three hundred and forty minutes, six hundred eighty thousand four hundred seconds. One week, one lifetime. It was far too long. She fights to get through each second, each agonizing second of separation. Without him, the feeling of emptiness, of loneliness and boredom is more than she can bear.

* * *

"Katara, you're daydreaming again," Mai said, removing her dagger from the hem of the waterbender's dress. "How am I supposed to practice if you keep daydreaming? And pay attention; you're going to get hurt if you keep that up and I am not going to be responsible."

"Sorry," Katara muttered. "I've just been distracted lately."

"This wouldn't have to do with Aang leaving, would it?" Mai wondered.

"No," Katara said, although her blushing betrayed her. "It has nothing to do with Aang leaving."

"Well, this is perfect," Mai said, throwing her hands up in the air. "Suki's busy moping because Sokka went with Aang and Zuko and you're busy daydreaming and Toph refuses to spar with me, so I can't practice."

"You've been doing this all day," Katara pointed out. "Ever since Zuko left. Can't we take a break?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because I need practice," Mai replied.

"No you don't. You're only practicing because Zuko's gone and you need to keep busy otherwise you'll start daydreaming too."

"What? That's the craziest thing I ever heard."

"Maybe," Katara said. "But you know it's true."

Mai scowled.

"Lighten up," Katara said. "I was just teasing."

"Unlike you and Suki, I'm not addicted to my boyfriend."

Katara burst out laughing. "Who're you kidding, Mai? Even Toph knows that's a lie and she can't see."

Mai just glared at her before rolling her eyes and stalking off to practice by herself.

Smiling, Katara sat under the shade of a tree in the courtyard and watched Mai's daggers whiz through the air. Normally, the little metal disks always found their mark, but today, Mai didn't seem to be too focused and Katara had a pretty good idea why.

"You know," the older girl said, coming to sit by her. "I hate it when you're right."

"What was I right about?"

"I'm just practicing to keep busy. With Zuko gone, I have nothing to do."

"You could do some paperwork. You've spent enough time with him at all those boring meetings to help."

"He took the papers with him," she said, sourly. "Besides, paperwork makes me grumpy."

Katara yawned. "You're grumpy enough as it is."

"I could try working on that new technique Suki showed me."

Katara nodded absently. She was always up for learning new moves, but somehow the thought of Suki and Mai combining tactics to make new moves wasn't too appealing.

"I think," she said, after a few minutes, getting up slowly. "I think I'll practice my waterbending."

"But you don't need practice," Mai pointed out, smirking.

"It doesn't hurt," Katara answered, standing in front of the pond in the courtyard.

"Katara, you're not bending," Mai pointed out after several minutes of inactivity.

"I know," the waterbender said. "I need a partner and…"

"And?"

"I'm too distracted," she said, miserably. "I can't focus on anything. And I miss Aang." The last part was uttered so softly Mai didn't hear.

"You should try…" Mai began but was interrupted by Katara who had suddenly burst into laughter. "What's so funny?"

The waterbender couldn't answer as her body shook with laughter. She was struck with the sudden realization that perhaps, just perhaps, she _was_ in fact addicted to the young airbender as Mai had said. It seemed ridiculous, but ever since Aang, Zuko, and Sokka had left, she hadn't been herself. She had been too distracted, too unfocused to be able to do much of anything but daydream.

"I still don't understand what's so funny," Mai's voice said, reminding Katara that she was still there.

"I don't really know how to explain," Katara admitted, resuming her seat beside her.

"Just try."

Admitting that she _might_ be addicted to the Avatar wasn't something she could just say, especially to Mai, even if it was marginally true. Perhaps that was an understatement. It was _completely_ true. She was hopelessly in love with the young Avatar, but she didn't know if it went as far as addiction. Love and addiction were two separate things, after all.

_Who are you kidding_? A little voice in her head whispered. _You're completely addicted to him. Just look at yourself._

Katara had to admit if she was trying not to appear like a love struck idiot, she was failing miserably. Mai had already caught her daydreaming several times and every now and then, Katara would catch herself slipping off into one as well. She was so bored without Aang; it wasn't as if she spent every waking minute with him when he was there, but she had always spent a large portion of her day with him. Still, her boredom didn't prove she was addicted to him, did it?

_Of course it does_, the little voice in her head began again. _You can't stand the separation._

She was surprised to realize that this was the longest she had ever been separated from Aang and Sokka. One week seemed too long. Sokka had sometimes gone hunting with their father when she was little. The two would disappear for two or three days on end, but it never bothered her until now. Oddly enough, she missed Sokka too.

_But you're not addicted to him_.

No, she agreed silently. I'm definitely not addicted to Sokka. She loved her brother, but when he went away she wasn't daydreaming about him.

_Either way, Katara, you've got an addiction and there's no cure whatsoever._

She had to admit it could have been true, although she wasn't too sure about the last part. Some part of her, she supposed, had always known that she was addicted to the young airbender although she hadn't been willing to accept it. Even now, she was hesitant to accept it. It still seemed ridiculous. She wouldn't deny that she was in love (mainly because she wasn't sure she could) but she still wasn't too sure about being addicted. It just wasn't possible. She couldn't have fallen so hard as to become addicted.

_Oh please. Remember what happened at Ba Sing Se_?

It wasn't a memory she liked to recall, but Katara had to admit that that annoying little voice had a point. After Aang had gotten injured, she hadn't left his side for days. When Sokka and Hakoda had mentioned it she had pointed out that _someone_ had to help him and she was suited for the job since she could heal. She knew it was a lie; even then she had known it was a lie. The real reason she refused to leave him was because she knew she couldn't, wouldn't let him die. Not when he still had his destiny to fulfill and not when she was beginning to realize that _he_ was her destiny.

Their failure at Ba Sing Se had taught her much, though she would have much rather preferred the easier way to finding things out. Aang had nearly died before she had started to accept that she felt _something_ for him. Even though it had been a while, she still clearly remembered sitting beside him aboard that captured Fire Navy ship, trying to sort out her feelings. She had known then that she needed him but she hadn't been smart enough to realize that she loved him. It wasn't until she realized that even her healing might not have been enough to save him that she had been truly frightened and willing to accept she cared about him. After that, she nearly worked herself to death trying to heal his injuries. When Toph and Sokka had protested and told her she shouldn't work herself so hard, she told them she had to, for him. But it was really for herself she had been trying. Because she wouldn't let him leave her. Because it distracted her from contemplating the thought that he could have died.

_What about when he ran away_?

That had taken its toll on her too. She had nearly died of fright when she had realized he was missing. For a split second, she hadn't been able to breathe or think. When her mind had finally started functioning logically and she finally had enough air, she had run off to tell her dad and in the end they had found him.

_What about the dance party he threw_?

That was a much pleasanter memory, one she even liked to recall. It had been an interesting evening, watching Fire Nation children let loose for once. Only that girl On Ji, had bothered her, but she had forgotten about her and all the other girls staring at him as soon as Aang had offered to dance with her. It had been one of their best nights in the Fire Nation and she hadn't wanted it to end.

_What about when he left for the invasion and then again when he left to fight Firelord Ozai_?

It hadn't been easy to watch him go both times, but she hadn't been too preoccupied about it because she had her injured fatherto look after during the invasion and an injured Zuko to worry about during the fight with Azula. Of course the moment they were okay, she had started to worry all over again even after she had told herself he would return.

_So if he left you now, if he disappeared, what would you do? _The little voice asked.

Katara hadn't really given much thought to what would happen if Aang did something like that but she had a pretty good idea.

_There you go, Katara. You said it yourself: he's your destiny and you're completely addicted to him_.

"Katara?"

The young waterbender looked at Mai and grinned.

"I think," she said, choosing her words carefully, and smiling a little wider. "I think I'm addicted."


	3. Forgotten

_Disclaimer: I don't own ATLA_

* * *

**III. Forgotten**

"_I have found the paradox, that if you love until it hurts, there can be no more hurt, only more love.__"_

~Mother Theresa

It was raining. The thought was firmly embedded in Katara's mind, as she wandered barefoot through the forest, enjoying the sensation as the heavy drops of water splashed against her skin. A fork of lightning lit the sky and thunder pealed far in the distance, but Katara was far too happy to care. The only thing bothering her was that slight nagging feeling, like she had forgotten something important.

The morning and afternoon had passed pleasantly enough. Even though Zuko, Aang, and Sokka were still busy attending meetings, they managed to have enough time to take a break and spend time with the girls. Zuko had some minor things to take care of, but other than that, the friends spent the day together. It reminded Katara of the old days and cheered her up. Even Mai had been in a surprisingly good mood all morning long, and, shockingly, Katara had even found her humming several times. Surprisingly, she had a good voice and Katara had told her as much. It must have put her in even better spirits because shortly before Katara slipped into the woods that bordered the palace courtyard, she could have sworn she saw Mai practically dancing around the lawn.

That nagging feeling still persisted, though. Some days, when she was up to it, Katara sat in on the meetings with Sokka and Aang. Usually, she stayed clear of them because some of the officials didn't approve of a young woman taking interest in them, but sometimes, she would go and help them out. Sometimes, some of the kinder officials encouraged her to take part in politics and gave her work to do. So, maybe it was the work she had forgotten to do that was bothering her. But she dismissed the idea as soon as it crossed her mind; she hadn't even gone to the last meeting yesterday and she certainly hadn't been given work. So what exactly was it that bothered her?

The rain was coming down harder now, drenching her completely, but Katara didn't seem to mind. What bothered her was the nagging feeling that wouldn't go away. How could something so trivial bother her so much? She had never really forgotten anything big. Small things, she forgot quite easily, but something big she rarely forgot. Something was supposed to happen today, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it.

Maybe Aang will remember, she thought. But then she realized that he was probably too busy to remember what _she_ needed to remember. Asking Sokka was out of the question. He was forgetful by nature and though there were certain things he remembered, he was just as busy as Aang and was therefore unlikely to remember what Katara had forgotten.

So where does that leave me? She wondered. A flash of lightning flickered in the sky and a roll of thunder echoed above her. When an answer didn't come to her, she forced herself to think of something else, something that would make her forget all about this nagging feeling.

Thus, a certain airbender became the center of her thoughts. In spite of all the time Katara spent with her friends, she sometimes felt like she barely knew them. When the war had ended, they expected work, Zuko and Aang especially, but certainly not the amount of work that they faced now. More than once, Katara had found Zuko and Aang working late into the night and Sokka was joining them more frequently. Sometimes, he seemed like a complete stranger to her. It worried her and oddly enough, she missed them. She missed Sokka cracking jokes and goofing off and battling with Suki (and invariably losing), and doing all those other things that were so characteristic of him. She missed Aang too. Even though she had spent most of her week with him, she still missed him. Sometimes, she missed him (and Sokka) so much it hurt; she thought she'd end up crying. It seemed ridiculous, but she could have sworn that it would have happened soon enough.

By now, the rain was coming down in a sheet, making it slightly harder to see. Katara knew she might end up sick the following morning, but the thought didn't bother. She loved the rain and the heat had been particularly brutal this week, so the cool drops of water that splashed over her were a welcome respite from the hot summer weather. Besides, it wasn't so bad being all alone. It was rather nice, she mused, simply wandering around. And so, she did just that.

She stopped, however, when she entered a small, nondescript clearing in the woods. A small slab of stone had been stuck into the ground and a wilted flower lay at its base. Katara inhaled sharply, suddenly remembering what she had forgotten.

* * *

"You know," Sokka said, stretching back and idly watching the rain fall outside. "I don't think I've ever seen Katara in such a good mood on this day."

"What day?" Toph wondered. "It's not different from any other day."

Sokka's gaze swept over the room where everyone except for Katara had all assembled. It was usually how they passed the evening, lounging around and relaxing. "I know this is what we do every day, but that's not what I meant."

"Then what did you mean?" the blind earthbender asked.

"It's our mom's death anniversary," Sokka said with a faraway look. "Usually, Katara gets all sad and gloomy around now. I remember one year at the South Pole, she spent the entire week preparing for this day. She still does."

"Maybe it's just her way of trying to forget about the horrible experience," Suki suggested.

Sokka shrugged. "I honestly don't know why she does it. But usually, she gets all quiet and sad this week every year. This year, she seems happier."

"Where exactly is she?" Zuko wondered, watching lightning light the sky. "It's a nasty day to be outside."

"She's a waterbender," Mai reminded him. "She loves water."

"Maybe a little too much," Sokka said. "I'm going to go look for her." He got up and left the room and even though he didn't ask, the others followed to help him.

* * *

All the pleasure she had originally gotten from being out in the rain vanished the instant Katara saw the unmarked grave in the clearing. She suddenly felt sick. Of all the things she had forgotten, how could she have forgotten this? How was it possible that she had forgotten her mother's death anniversary? She used to spend the entire week steeling herself for this day, so that when the day came she wasn't a complete mess. But this year, she had almost forgotten.

What have I been doing the entire week? She wondered. This week had been completely uneventful, so much so that even Zuko had nothing to do and he was usually the one who had a never-ending list of things to do. Katara didn't remember doing anything special. In fact, the entire week had passed and she had spent her time with Aang. She had been having so much fun, she had almost forgotten.

For a fraction of a second, the tiniest space of time possible, she hated him for that. She knew it was completely unfair of her to blame him for making her forget, but a part of her was mad at him. But another part was grateful towards him for making her forget. It wasn't a pleasant day to celebrate and she had tried for years to forget this day.

For the first time in a long time, Katara missed her mother so much, she thought she might actually die of grief. She hadn't felt like this since she was a little girl. She wished the feeling would go away. It made her feel like the helpless little girl she had been all over again. And even though she knew that little girl was gone, she felt like a shadow of that same helpless girl was beginning to emerge again. So Katara just sat there in that clearing, letting the rain fall over her. Even when she heard the faint yells of her friends calling her name, she made no move to go.

* * *

By the time Aang found Katara, he was soaked to the skin and he had only been outside for five minutes. The rain was relentless but Katara seemed totally unaffected by it. She was sitting in front of an unmarked grave and staring ahead. The soles of her feet and the hem of her dress were caked in mud and she was drenched. He sighed to himself and silently sat down beside her. For a while, neither of them said anything, but at last, he broke the silence.

"I'm sorry," he said.

"I almost forgot," she said, softly. She sounded sad, crestfallen. Her face was wet, but whether it was from tears or the rain, he couldn't say. Once again, they both lapsed into silence but it was Katara who spoke first after a few minutes had elapsed.

"She would have liked you."

Aang turned to stare at her. "Your mother?"

She nodded. "Sometimes, you remind me of her."

"Is that a bad thing?" he asked, tentatively.

"No," she replied, shaking her head. "Not at all." She gave a small laugh. "I think my mother would have liked Toph too."

"I don't know. You really think Toph would have gone to the South Pole? She wouldn't be able to see there."

Katara shrugged. "I don't know, but if my mom had survived, I'm sure they would have gotten along pretty well. I think she'd even like Zuko and Mai; she was a very social person and everyone liked her."

"I'm sure we would have liked her too," he said, quietly.

Katara nodded. "Everyone liked her; even all those sour old people back home liked her." She sighed. "Sometimes, I wish she didn't do what she did."

"They say a mother's love goes a long way."

"I know, but I wished she hadn't sacrificed herself for me. I don't think the Fire Nation would have done anything to me; I was hardly a waterbender then. I'm sure if they saw my waterbending then, they'd have laughed."

Aang shrugged. "Who knows? But I'm sorry things happened the way they did."

"I'm not entirely sorry," she replied. "Even if I did lose my mother, some good came out of it."

He met her gaze and gave a small smile. "Come on," he said, standing up. "We should probably get back."

Katara nodded and stood up, casting one last glance at the unmarked grave. A sudden realization struck her then. Once, the mere thought of her mother was painful, but now, it no longer hurt as it once did. She loved her mother and she missed her more than words could express, but the pain wasn't so sharp anymore. It was a dull ache, one she hardly noticed. It would always be there, she supposed, but Aang could always make her forget about it. She didn't know if the airbender was trying to make her forget on purpose or trying to distract her so she wasn't too depressed. Whatever he was doing, whether he was doing it intentionally or unintentionally, it seemed to be working because the pain had almost vanished. And it was suddenly so much easier to talk about her mother without bursting into tears or feeling sad.

"Katara? Are you coming?" Aang asked. She nodded and much to his surprise hugged him.

"Thank you," she whispered.

"For what?" he asked, wrapping his arms around her.

She smiled, the first real smile he had seen her smile all day. "For making me forget."

* * *

_Thanks for all the reviews! :)_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	4. Disorientated

_Disclaimer: I don't own ATLA_

* * *

**IV. Disorientated**

_I'm disorientated  
I'm trying not to be jaded  
When it's all so complicated  
'Cause I'm a little disorientated_

~Delta Goodrem, Disorientated

If there was one thing Katara hated about Aang, it was what he did to her. One minute, all her attention could be focused on something, and the next, his mere presence would cause her to lose her concentration. And even after all this time, it didn't take much on his part to make her lose her focus. She found it infuriating the way his smile could suddenly make her mind go blank or how a casual greeting from him could suddenly make her cheeks turn red. Of course she hadn't been completely oblivious. She had known that once upon a time, she had a similar effect on him, but it had seemed to wear off after a while. Now he was doing it to her, and what's worse, she realized, was that he seemed to notice.

She never understood how or when the change had taken place. It must have been sometime after Ozai's defeat, because up until then, she had been fine. In love, but still okay. But now… She let out a soft laugh. Well now, everything was different. She was so distracted whenever Aang was around. Not that she had been completely focused before, but at least then, his presence didn't affect her as it did now. Sometimes, when she was waterbending, she would unknowingly start daydreaming and her bending would be of control. Sometimes, when he watched her practice, she couldn't even get the basic moves right. It bothered her more than it should have. How on earth was he doing this to her?

It was the same thought that plagued her mind as she talked to one of Zuko's war generals at yet another party. The general had long ago started talking about mobilization tactics in the colonies so Katara had pretended to listen. She had long ago gotten used to the boring old generals and their boring conversations about politics so that whenever anyone looked her direction, it appeared like she was in an animated conversation, when she was really just tuning out the boring chatter.

"Wouldn't you say so?" the general asked.

Katara absently nodded.

"Good. I'll bring him over immediately."

She blinked. "I'm sorry, General. Who?"

"My son of course. You just agreed to dance with him."

"I did?" she stammered, but the general had already gone to talk to his son.

He was a handsome man, only one or two years older than her, but his good looks and charming manners still didn't make Katara want to dance. Out of politeness, however, she followed him onto the dance floor and let him lead her. They talked a bit as they danced. Mostly, Katara just listened. She was still wondering how she got herself into this mess. I was thinking about…

Her mind suddenly went blank as she caught a certain airbender's eye. He smiled at her and she almost lost her footing. She suppressed a groan. How on earth could something so simple make her so disorientated?

"Are you okay?" her partner asked. His gray eyes were watching her every movement, and he looked concerned.

"Fine," she whispered, carefully watching him. She was positive that a minute ago, his eyes had been green. In fact, they had reminded her of…

What exactly was it? She wondered as Aang smiled at her from a distance. It definitely wasn't emeralds, was it? She thought long and hard as they danced, but the answer never came to her because every time she waltzed past Aang, whether or not their gazes met, she lost her train of thought. When at last dancing became too much for her, she slipped away into the courtyard, grateful for the cool fresh air. It seemed to draw her out of her stupor, and make her mind function more clearly. Of course, the moment Aang joined her, she slipped back into the same state.

"Is everything okay?" he asked. "You ran out of there really fast."

"I just needed some fresh air. It was too stuffy in there," she replied. For a while, neither of them said anything. They just stood side by side and watched the setting sun. At last, Katara turned to him and broke the silence.

"Do you have to keep doing that?"

"Doing what?" Aang asked, confused.

"Distracting me. I can't focus on anything anymore. Do you have any idea how irritating it is?"

"I'm distracting you?" His tone was surprised, but Katara detected a faint trace of laughter in it.

She sighed. "That's not the half of it," she muttered.

"No?"

Her eyes widened. When had his hearing become so good? She thought. She hadn't spoken all that loudly.

"Katara?"

"What?"

"You were saying?"

Katara looked up. Aang's gray eyes were fixed on her and he was waiting for her reply. "I was saying something?" she said, blankly. She could have kicked herself. Spirits, she sounded stupid.

Aang laughed and Katara frowned. "See? This is exactly what I mean. I really can't concentrate anymore."

"And it's my fault?"

"More or less."

"I see."

"What changed?" Katara wondered.

"What do you mean?" he replied.

"I was fine before." She said. _Wasn't I_? She added in afterthought.

"And now you're not?"

"Did you see me dancing? I was a complete mess."

"No you weren't. You were beautiful, like you always are."

Katara could have melted away. When did they switch places? She remembered a time, not so long ago, when a mere smile from her could have made him clumsy or a simple hello could have made him lose his focus. She never thought much of it back then; she assumed it was just Aang being himself. She never thought he might have been bothered by it. But now, now that she was in that situation, she realized that it must have been the same for him.

"Katara." He was calling her name again in that singsong voice, baiting her.

She buried her face in her hands. "I don't know what's wrong with me."

"There's nothing wrong with you." he said, earnestly.

"Yes, there is. You don't how distracting you can be. I can't focus on anything anymore. It's like I'm in a daze, like I'm disoriented."

"Katara," he said, taking her hands. She was sure her pulse skyrocketed then and that he felt it. "You've been doing that to me for a long time."

"It doesn't work anymore," she pointed out.

Aang smiled. "It just takes some getting used to, I guess."

Katara frowned. "Well, it's is infuriating. Stop doing that."

"But I'm not doing anything," he protested, laughing and smiling. "Really."

Katara wanted to retaliate. _If you're not doing anything, why is my head spinning and why do I feel like this_? Instead, she settled for, "Of course you're not."

He laughed. "Trust me, Katara. The feeling goes away."

"Does it really?" She wondered. "Maybe for you, but I don't think it'll go so easily for me." After all, she had never been able to stay away from him, and that seemed like the only logical solution to make the feeling go away. Oddly enough though, being away from him produced the same effect. It all ended in distraction and disorientation.

"What makes you say that?" Aang asked.

"You know what," Katara replied.

He interlaced his fingers with hers. "Yeah, I know."

Katara sighed, but she was smiling. "Silly things happen to silly girls in love."

Oh well, she thought. It would just take time and luckily, neither she nor Aang were going anywhere. After all, wasn't this what love was all about?

* * *

_Thanks to everyone who reviewed. You all rock!_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	5. Déjà Vu

_Disclaimer: I don't own ATLA_

* * *

**V. Déjà Vu**

"_There is nothing in the world so wonderful as to love and be loved."_

~Unknown

She never thought she could hate the sun so much but after weeks of scorching heat and no rain, she did. The fields they passed were shades of yellow and brown, wastelands of stalks and roots that were slowly decaying underneath the harsh summer sun. The wells held little water and townspeople were walking three miles to the river to get clean water. It had been weeks now, but the drought that had been plaguing the Earth Kingdom showed no signs of letting up.

"This is all we managed to get," Sokka said, as he entered the house he shared with his friends.

Suki stared at the strange-looking vegetables that Sokka and Katara had gotten from the market. "Is any of that edible?" She wondered.

Katara shrugged. "I hope so because otherwise we're going to have to look for berries and nuts for the next two days. New produce isn't supposed to arrive until then."

Suki sighed. "At least we've got food for tonight."

"Where is everyone?" Katara asked.

"Zuko and Mai went for a walk, Iroh's out playing pai sho somewhere, Toph's in her room and Aang's outside," Suki said. "He says he needs your help with something."

"With what?"

Suki shrugged. "I don't know. Find out and let us know."

Katara gave the warrior a puzzled glance before walking outside. She found the airbender outside, tightening the reins on Appa's horns as the bison munched on some hay. He looked excited and Katara wondered what he was up to.

"Hi Aang. Suki said you needed my help with something."

Aang nodded but otherwise remained silent.

"Are we going out of the city?" Katara asked.

"Not too far."

"Are we flying?"

"Yes."

"Does whatever we're going to do involve bending?"

"Are you done playing twenty questions?" Aang asked, grinning.

"Sorry. I'm just curious. So what _are_ we doing?"

"You'll see," Aang said as they mounted Appa and took off into the sky. Katara's curiosity was heightened. They were headed straight up and Katara got the feeling that the young Avatar had something up his sleeve but she kept quiet. She knew Aang well enough to know that he would tell her.

She hadn't expected their journey to be a long one, but it was. She must have dozed off at some point because the next thing she knew, Aang was shaking her awake. He laughed at the confused look on her face.

"Where are we?" She asked.

"We're still in the Earth Kingdom if that's what you're wondering." Katara looked down. From her vantage point on Appa's saddle, she could see pastures and little tiny villages.

"Why are we here?"

Aang motioned upwards and Katara shifted her gaze. For the first time since waking up, she realized that the sun was hidden behind the clouds.

"We're going to make it rain," Aang said, his eyes twinkling.

"Haven't you messed with the clouds enough for one lifetime?" Katara teased.

"Maybe but the city really needs some rain. I just thought we should help."

"And the all powerful Avatar couldn't do it by himself?"

Aang shrugged. "I haven't actually tried doing it by myself. Besides, where's the fun in that?"

"You have a point," Katara said. "But how can I help? With my luck, I'll probably create snow or something." But she grinned. "Maybe this winter…"

"Haven't you messed with the clouds enough for one lifetime?" Aang mocked. Katara rolled her eyes, but she was laughing.

Even though she had bent the clouds before, Katara never realized how tiring it was. It wasn't as easy as it had been the first time, but the first time she had done it, they hadn't been trying to make it rain. It was exhausting, really, but the end result was worth it. For the first time in weeks, dark, heavy storm clouds hung over their village. Even though Katara and Aang were in the sky, they could see the villagers poke their heads out of their houses and heard the faint sounds of joy they emitted.

"That was fun," Katara said, as Appa landed on a hilltop just outside the village. "But I'm not ready to try that again anytime soon. I'm exhausted."

Aang gave an apologetic smile. "Sorry. I guess I never thought about…"

"I had fun," Katara said, earnestly. "Really, I did. I just hope this works."

The storm clouds were still over the village, but the rain was slow in coming. It was a full half hour before the first drop hit the ground. After that, the rain came down in torrents. Katara and Aang just watched as all the villagers came out. For the first time in a long time, the little children began playing in the water and Katara grinned. She remembered a time not too long ago when the rain had provided hours of amusement for her.

Suddenly, Katara never wanted the rain to end. There was a simple pleasure in being out in the rain with the young Avatar. She much rather preferred being with him than playing in the rain. Even though there was a definite possibility that one or both of them would end up sick tomorrow, Katara wanted to spend all day out with him in the rain. If nothing else, it would make up for all the time they had lost in the past.

"Do you ever think about the future?" Katara wondered, glancing at the airbender who was watching the villagers in the distance. He turned to look at her, before answering.

"Sometimes," he admitted. "But why waste your time worrying about what you don't know?"

Katara shrugged. "I've always been worried about the future, ever since I was a little girl. I don't really know why, though."

"Do you still worry about it?" he asked.

"Sometimes," she conceded.

"Why?"

"Remember the other day, when I told you what Gran Gran had once said about our destinies and you said you were glad?" she asked. Aang nodded. "That's why."

"You worry because our futures were intertwined?"

Katara nodded. "You're the Avatar; won't you get bored of me?"

"Katara, that's the stupidest thing I ever heard," Aang laughed. "How could I possibly get bored of you?"

"Well a girl can wonder, can't she?"

"I guess," he acknowledged. "But I meant what I said. I'm glad our destinies are intertwined because without you, the future's not really worth looking into."

"You sure know how to sweet-talk a girl, Avatar Aang," Katara teased. "When did you become so good?"

He shrugged. "Oh, I don't know. But I meant every word I said, Katara."

"Really?"

He nodded.

She smiled and kissed him. "Well then we're similar because I really don't have much of a future without you."

* * *

Hundreds of years later, two lone figures stood atop a mountain, bending storm clouds over the drought-plagued valley below.

"Maybe one day in the future, there'll be cloudbenders," The airbending Avatar joked.

His waterbending companion smiled. "You seem to think about the future a lot," she said. "Worried?"

"No," he replied. "I've got you and that's all I need for now."

The waterbender blushed. "You don't think you'll ever get tired of me?"

"Of course not. How could I possible get tired of you?"

"A girl can wonder, can't she?"

"Absolutely not. I forbid you to think anything like that," the Avatar said.

"Why not?" she wondered.

"Because without you, I have no future," the Avatar shamelessly admitted. "I'll never get tired of you."

"You certainly know how to charm a girl," the waterbender said, lightly kissing the avatar. "You must have had years of practice."

The Avatar's gray eyes met her cerulean ones and something unspoken passed between them.

"Doing this," the Avatar said. "Having this conversation- it all seems vaguely familiar, like I've done this before."

The waterbender smiled. "No wonder you're so good at cloudbending and charming a girl," she whispered before kissing him again.

And from somewhere in the heavens, Avatar Aang and Master Katara smiled.


	6. Unable

_Disclaimer: I don't own ATLA_

* * *

**VI. Unable**

_Catch me, as I fall._

_Say you're here and it's all over now._

~Evanescence, Whisper

_I don't want to do this_. The thought is foremost in Katara's mind as she stares at the rippling waters of the lake in front of her. A full moon hangs in the night sky, its reflection wavering in the water below and she struggles to contain that little voice screaming inside of her. She can feel the heartbeat of every little creature around her, from the tiny cricket crouched in the grass at her feet to the fish deep below the water's surface. The full moon is calling to her, whispering frightening words in her ear and she wants so badly for them to stop. But they grow louder and louder, filling her head with dark thoughts until she feels sick to her stomach.

Fast and free, the tears start falling, one by one until her vision is blurred and she can no longer see her surroundings. The feeling, the _need_ is still within her, slowly taking over. She feels the heartbeat of the tiny insect at her feet and shudders. One snap of her fingers, just the slightest movement of her hand, and it would die.

_Do it, Katara_. The voice whispers. _You'll feel better. Bloodbend,_

The voice is like a command and her hands are itching to move, to bend something, anything, but she restrains herself because she promises herself she will not turn into Hama. The night is no longer silent. Somewhere in the distance, an owl hoots and a wolf howls, low and mournful and Katara shivers. A few turtle-ducks float lazily over the water, their heads tucked underneath their wings as they sleep. For a while, Katara watches them warily, ever mindful of the decreasing distance between them. The moon still has its hold on her and though she doesn't want to bloodbend, she is tiring. Her resistance is wearing off and she doesn't want to hurt the innocent creatures in their peaceful slumber.

She thinks about running away, escaping to some remote part of the woods until the feelings fades, but she knows it's useless. There is nowhere for her to go and she knows she can't run away; it would worry the others and she isn't the type to run, in any case.

The feeling still lingers though, and she clenches her hands, waiting for it to go away, but it doesn't. So she dives into the lake, startling the turtle-ducks from their slumber and causing them to swim far away. She surfaces and throwing back her long, loose hair, stares defiantly at the moon. The water doesn't do much to quell the feeling, but it distracts her for a short time. But then the moon is exerting its power over her once again, and that same feeling rears up inside her.

_Bloodbender_.

That annoying little voice is back again and Katara frowns.

_Surrender, Katara. You're a bloodbender now. Sooner or later, you'll have to blood-_

She dives back underwater to silence the voice, because underwater, she can't seem to hear or feel anything. The only things she feels are the fish that swim in the water as they brush against her skin. But as always, the moon seems to be winning. The feeling returns, stronger now, and she can feel the rhythmic heartbeat of every creature beneath the glass-like surface of the water and it is too much. So she returns to sit on the shore and begins wringing the water out from her hair.

"Katara?"

She turns to see Aang standing behind her and she suddenly feels guilty.

"What are you doing up so late?"

"I couldn't sleep," she replies. It isn't a complete lie, but it isn't the whole truth either.

He notices her gaze fixed on the reflection of the full moon in the water and nods understandingly and she turns back to watch the lake waters again. She can feel his gaze on her, his silver eyes watching her alertly, making sure she really is okay.

"You know, you won't turn into her," he says.

"Who?"

"Hama."

"You don't know that," she whispers, wanting desperately to believe him but knowing enough to know that time has a way of changing people.

"I know _you_," he points out. "You won't turn into her."

"How do you know? I don't know how much longer I can keep this up." She answers.

"Then don't," he replies. "You'll never turn into her."

Katara sighs. "I'm more afraid I won't be able to control my bloodbending than I am of turning into someone like her. And I can't keep fighting this feeling."

"Then don't," Aang repeats shrugging.

"I have to. Otherwise, I'll end up bloodbending." Her voice is a whisper now, soft and low and there is something like desperation camouflaged in it. "I hate it. I _want_ to bloodbend, but I can't. It's…"

"Katara," he says suddenly, cutting her off. "Bloodbend."

She stares at him, unable to understand. "What?"

"Bloodbend something, anything. Me," he suggests.

Katara's eyes are wide in surprise and shock and her face is visibly paler. "You?"

He nods, smiling and she can't figure out why he is smiling at her like that.

"I can't," she manages to choke out; suddenly fearful of what he was asking of her. "What if I…?"

"You said you wanted to bloodbend."

"Only when it's a full moon. I don't know why, but every full moon, the feeling's the same. I can't stand it."

"So bloodbend," Aang insists.

"I can't," she explains. "I want to, but I just can't. I'm too scared I'll hurt someone."

"See," he says gently, taking her hands. "That's the difference. You couldn't hurt someone accidentally even if you tried. You don't have it in you."

She nods. "It still doesn't make me feel better, though. I guess I'll just have to wait it out like all the other times."

"Have you been doing this every full moon?"

"More or less," she admits, nodding miserably. "It's hard to find a good distraction but good company helps."

He smiles. "You know, you could have told someone sooner."

She shrugs. "What's the difference? No one can help. It's better when I'm alone, anyway. I can't hurt someone."

He sighs. "You won't hurt anyone."

"How do you know?" She demands. "I can feel the heartbeat of everything and everyone right now, even Sokka, Suki, and Toph over there," She motions in their general direction. "It would be so easy to..." She shudders.

"You couldn't bloodbend the Southern Raider who killed your mother. You really think you're going to hurt one of us?"

"Only during the full moon," she points out. "I can control it at other times but during the full moon..." Her voice trails away and for the first time, Aang notices how tired she looks. So pale and tired, exhausted from resisting the urge to bloodbend and the night is still young.

"Katara, you can't keep this up all night."

"Yes I can," She snaps. "I have to." She is adamant and edgy, so he doesn't try and dissuade her. Instead, he settles for something else.

"Then I'm staying up too."

"Are you crazy?" she cries. "What if I…?"

"If you want to bloodbend so badly, just do it."

Katara glances at him. He is challenging her; she can tell because his eyes are no longer twinkling. He is completely serious.

"I have nothing to bloodbend," she says. She knows it's a weak argument, but she is still praying he'll drop the subject. "And I'm not bloodbending the animals."

"You could use me," he suggests again, casually, as if it would make no difference to her.

Her eyes widen in fear and he grins.

"Don't worry. You couldn't hurt me even if you tried."

She knows he's teasing her, but she's still mortified that he's being so light about it. She doesn't want to bloodbend but she finds herself on her feet, before she can she can stop herself. She wants so badly to bloodbend, but she's deathly afraid of practicing on_ him_.

_Bloodbend, Katara. I promise you'll feel much better_, the voice says as she stares at her hands. She realizes that despite the humid summer night, she is shivering, trembling in fear. She tries thinking of the steps. A solid stance, beginning by waterbending then slowly transitioning. Hama's voice suddenly comes back to her. _Bloodbending_, _controlling the water in another body; enforcing your own will over theirs._

"I can't," Katara says, almost falling to the ground. Aang steadies her. "I can't and even if I could, I won't." She's still shaking in fear and he is still smiling, although she has no idea why.

"I told you," he says, smugly. "You don't have it in you. You never did."

"But…"

"Katara, people like you don't suddenly turn evil."

"But, Aang…" She begins, protesting, but he silences her quite effectively.

The distance between them is suddenly gone and Katara realizes that she is no longer shaking. When he wraps his arms protectively around her and kisses her, she realizes that all her thoughts on bloodbending vanished and suddenly, miraculously, she is no longer afraid. Just tired and sleepy. But she doesn't want to sleep just yet so they sit side by side and watch the water.

"You should worry less about bloodbending and more about how you're going to function in the morning," he teases, as Katara struggles to keep her eyes open.

She yawns and smiles. "The voices," she murmurs, fighting sleep. "They're gone."

"Voices?" He asks confused, but Katara is lost in thought staring defiantly at the moon as if to say "_you can't do anything to me now._" Usually, she finds herself alone on such nights, fighting the temptation to bloodbend and failing to find a distraction. But as she gazes at the full moon now, she smiles, because she's found the perfect distraction. All she needed all along was good company.

"Katara?" Aang tries again, but she's still thinking about how a certain airbender so easily fixed her problems. So Aang just watches the turtle-ducks floating lazily in the moonlit waters until he becomes aware of a light weight on his shoulder. Smiling, he glances at Katara who is fast asleep, head resting on his shoulder and a small smile on her face. He wonders what she is dreaming about, but from the look on her face, he can tell she is content and that's really all that matters.

* * *

_Thanks for all the reviews!_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	7. Out of Curiosity

_Disclaimer: I don't own ATLA_

* * *

**VII. Out of Curiosity**

"Curiouser and curiouser!"

~ Lewis Carroll

"I've been meaning to ask you," Sokka said to Aang, one afternoon as he, Aang and Zuko sat underneath the shade of a tree. They were supposed to be on a picnic, but Toph, Mai, Suki, and Katara had wandered a few feet away to play a game. Sokka, Zuko, and Aang were content to just sit and watch. "What exactly did you and Katara do the day we met? She was ready to leave the tribe."

"What do you think we did?" The airbender asked.

Sokka shrugged. "I don't know. She started acting weird all of a sudden. I couldn't figure it out. We barely knew you and she was ready to leave."

"When was this?" Zuko wondered.

"Right before you attacked us," Sokka said.

The young Firelord grinned sheepishly. "Oh. Sorry about that."

"You better be," Sokka said, frowning. "You destroyed my watchtower. Do you have any idea how long it took to build that thing?"

"No offense, Sokka," the Firelord said. "But it wasn't much of a watchtower."

Sokka grumbled something inaudible before turning back to the Avatar. "You still haven't answered my question."

"We didn't do anything," Aang said. "It's not like we signaled the Fire Nation or anything."

Zuko stared at them blankly, completely confused.

"Sokka was convinced I was Fire Nation," Aang explained.

Zuko laughed. "You thought _Aang_ was a firebender? What gave you that idea?"

"He showed up out of nowhere," Sokka said, in defense. "How was I supposed to know?"

"Sokka, he looks like an airbender. Airbenders are not firebenders."

Sokka scowled. "I'm not stupid, Zuko. I was just suspicious. You can never be too careful."

"I wish we remembered that when we were travelling," Aang muttered. "Probably would have saved us a lot of trouble."

Sokka nodded. "True. You still haven't answered my question, though."

"For the third time, Sokka, we didn't do anything. Honest."

Sokka sighed. "I'm just trying to figure it out. You were a complete stranger yet Katara was willing to abandon us and leave with you."

"Maybe because he's the Avatar," Zuko suggested.

"No. We found out only _after_ you attacked us."

"Oh."

"This whole thing is kind of your fault," Sokka pointed out. "If you hadn't taken Aang, then Katara and I wouldn't have had to go after you and we wouldn't have spent all those months travelling around the world."

"Sorry," Zuko apologized.

Sokka grinned. "I never said I didn't like it."

"You certainly complained enough," Aang chuckled and Sokka just scowled at him.

"Well, there were lots of good things that came out of travelling the world," the warrior said, brightening up. "I got to learn from a sword master, I got to see the Earth Kingdom and the Fire Nation, and I met Suki and Yue."

"Don't forget me," Zuko teased. "Evil prince, remember?"

"How could I forget? You know, you're pretty lucky Katara didn't decide to finish you off before you joined our side. She hated you."

"I know," Zuko replied, remembering how she had threatened him at the Western Air Temple. "Sometimes, I think she still does."

Sokka shook his head. "My sister is weird sometimes, but she doesn't hate you. She _did_ save your life remember?"

Zuko nodded, watching Mai and Toph argue about something in the distance. Suki had an amused expression, but Katara just looked annoyed.

"I remember."

Sokka followed his gaze and shook his head. "I'll never understand girls."

"Me neither. How Suki fell for you is a complete mystery to me," Zuko joked and Sokka scowled.

"How Mai fell for you is a mystery to _me_," he shot back, but he realized Zuko wasn't really paying attention. Instead, he was watching the girls argue. From where they were sitting, they could hear snippets of the conversation.

"…doesn't count," Toph said.

"That's not fair…fight…earthbending…" Mai shot back.

"If you two don't stop fighting, I'll freeze both of you in a block of ice and let you slowly thaw," Katara yelled and Zuko flinched from where he was sitting.

"Your sister's got a loud voice," he noted. "I didn't know she could yell like that."

"That's considered soft," Sokka said. "You should have seen her back home. Once when one boy stole her favorite doll, she yelled at him so loud, I'm pretty sure the ice sculptures cracked."

Zuko turned to Aang. "Out of curiosity, why Katara? I'm pretty sure you could have had any girl."

Sokka looked offended. "Hey, what's wrong with my sister?"

"Nothing," Zuko hastily amended. "I've heard that lots of Avatars have ended up with royalty and stuff like that. I just assumed Aang would do the same."

"Technically, I guess Katara and I could be royalty," Sokka said. "Our dad is the chief, but the Southern Water Tribe was so small and so close knit, there really wasn't any need to be treated like royalty."

"Well then, _Prince_ Sokka," Zuko teased. "Aren't you glad you're being treated like royalty now?"

Sokka chuckled. "Prince Sokka. It's got a nice ring to it," he commented. "You know, I could become chief one day. _Chief _Sokka. That's got an even nicer ring to it. But yes, I'm glad we're being treated like royalty, although, the fan clubs are still a little annoying."

"I've been working on that," Zuko admitted. "You know, I think I should just pass a law that makes it illegal to have Firelord fan clubs or whatever they are. But Aang, you never answered my question."

The Avatar just raised an eyebrow. He was suddenly wondering why everyone was asking him questions, especially questions he didn't have answers for. He didn't know why Zuko was suddenly so curious, either.

"I don't know," he responded truthfully. As Avatar, he supposed he could have had any girl, like Zuko said, but growing up in the Southern Air Temple, he and the other monks hadn't really interacted much with the nuns. Katara was the first girl he met in a long time, so perhaps that had something to do with it. After he met her, he didn't really think much about other girls.

"I always thought you liked Meng," Sokka admitted.

"Meng?" Aang repeated, thinking of the small girl with unmanageable hair that had followed him around in Aunt Wu's village.

"Or On Ji."

"On Ji was nice," Aang admitted. "But I hardly knew her."

"But you spent a lot of time with her," Sokka pointed out.

Aang just shrugged. "I felt sorry for her. Her boyfriend was a jerk."

"Who?" Zuko asked, but neither Sokka nor Aang bothered to explain.

Sokka was about to say something, but Suki came over and sat next to him.

"You might want to give your girlfriend a hand," She said to Zuko. "And Toph. They're going to need some help."

Zuko glanced at them, surprised to find that they were already partially encased in ice but despite that, they were still arguing. Katara was ineffectively trying to mediate the argument, but the two were working on her last nerve, so she just froze them up to their necks in solid ice and stalked away.

"You couldn't have gone for a different type of girl?" Zuko hissed in a whisper to Aang as he hurried to unfreeze Mai. "Why Katara?"

"Why _not_ Katara?" Aang whispered back.

Zuko couldn't come up with a single reason.

* * *

_Thanks for all the reviews!_

_~ C. Alice_


	8. Cloud Nine

_Disclaimer: I don't own ATLA_

* * *

**VIII. Cloud Nine**

"_Walking on cloud nine."_

~ Proverb

"Oh no!"

Katara woke up with a start and fell off her bed, landing on the floor with a less than graceful thud. Suki poked her head into her friend's room next door, and blinked. Sunlight was pouring in through the window, bathing the waterbender in a golden light.

"Katara? Are you okay?" The older girl laughed at the young woman lying on the floor, hair in disarray and her feet tangled in the bed covers. The waterbender looked dazed and slightly irritated that she had been woken up from a rather pleasant dream.

"Fine," Katara muttered, rubbing her head. "What happened?"

Suki shrugged. "Beats me. I just got up."

From somewhere down the corridor the exclamation of horror was issued again, but this time, slightly louder. Suki went in to the corridor surprised to find the others minus Sokka, awake. Several heads had poked out of their rooms, exchanging glances with each other and looking at the figure that was entering the corridor.

"Uncle?" A sleepy Zuko asked. "What are you doing?"

Iroh looked crestfallen. "I was making some breakfast and…"

Zuko yawned. "Did you burn yourself?"

"No," the General replied.

"Did you cut yourself?"

"No, but I…"

"Did you set the kitchen on fire?"

"Of course not, Zuko."

The Firelord yawned again and cast a sleepy glance at his girlfriend. "Then what happened, Uncle?"

"I dropped the teapot."

"That's not so bad. We can get a new one if it broke."

"There was tea _in the pot_," Iroh cried. "Freshly brewed jasmine tea, wasted."

Everyone groaned and Katara flopped back on her bed. "I was having such a good dream too."

"About a certain someone?" Suki asked, slyly. Katara threw her pillow at the Kyoshi warrior with such force, Suki staggered back.

"Absolutely not," was her reply.

Suki chuckled. "You're lying," she accused in a singsong voice.

"Why don't you go wake my brother up," was Katara's muffled response as she buried her face in another pillow.

"I'd need an army of earthbenders to wake him up," Suki protested, laughing.

"Ask Toph."

"And have her earthbend me? No thanks."

Katara groaned and, getting up, began making her bed. She was desperately trying to remember her dream, but already she had forgotten most of it. All she remembered was that whatever she had been doing, she had been enjoying it, and she hadn't wanted it to stop.

"I'll see you at breakfast," Suki trilled, humming as she disappeared into her room to get ready.

Breakfast was slightly later that day, owing to Iroh's unfortunate mishap, but it was still just as good. The mere smell of food had woken Sokka up and five minutes later, he was at the table in Zuko's summer house, waiting to be served. They were all present except for Katara who hadn't come out of her room since she had woken up. Mai glanced in the direction of the waterbender's empty chair and looked questioningly at the others. Normally, Katara was one of the first ones to be ready, but today, she was an hour late and their food was growing cold.

"I'm sure she'll be down any minute," Iroh said, pouring tea for everyone.

Zuko nodded and took a sip, savoring the flavor. He raised the cup to take another sip but immediately jumped when there was a loud thud and a crash which resulted in him spitting out his tea.

"Zuko!" Mai wailed, glaring at him. He smiled sheepishly at her now tea-stained robes.

"What was that?" Top wondered.

Suki shrugged but made her way to the corridor and suddenly burst out laughing. A staircase ran along the far end, connecting the second story to the secluded dining area. Katara was lying at the foot of the stairs, her braid, undone and several flowers on her dress. The flower vase was standing precariously on her head and beads of water were dripping from her hair. The small table (on which the vase had been kept on) had been at the foot of the stairs but was now lying broken a few feet away.

"I thought I was a klutz," Sokka muttered, trying hard not to laugh. His sister just glared at him.

"What happened?" Zuko sighed.

"What do you think happened?" she snapped. "I fell down the stairs and crashed into the table."

"You didn't break the vase, did you?"

"Zuko!" Mai hit him.

"No, I didn't," Katara replied, shoving the vase at him. "The vase is just fine." Sokka helped her up and she bent the water out of her dress.

"You should be more careful," Iroh advised. "You could easily get hurt."

"What made you fall in the first place?" Suki asked.

"Momo," Katara said, pointing and accusing finger at the lemur but she laughed when she noticed his adorable, innocent expression.

"I heard airbenders know a thing or two about balance," Suki whispered, wryly. Toph suppressed a giggle. "Maybe you should take a lesson or two from Aang."

"Ha ha," Katara retorted. "I'll take lessons from Aang the day you learn from Sokka how to throw a boomerang."

Suki burst out laughing and Toph smirked.

* * *

There weren't many things to do at the summer house, Katara realized. She had already practiced her waterbending three times, attempted to clean her room twice, and walked along the beach once. It was still early afternoon, but she found she had nothing left to do. The others had left to watch a play in the nearby town, but it sounded like a repeat of that god-awful play they had seen before the war, so Katara had elected to stay behind, knowing that she would be bored, but preferring the boredom to the play. What she didn't know, was that she wasn't completely alone.

"Need some company?"

If Katara wasn't used to the way Aang would sometimes sneak up on her, she would have jumped in surprise. It must have been an airbender thing; he was always so light on his feet, she sometimes never noticed his presence until he spoke.

"You seem really down," Aang noted. "What's wrong?"

Katara just shrugged. "Today's just an off day, I guess. What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be watching that play with everyone else?"

"They won't miss me; Zuko decided to show them a secret island or something that he discovered and it's an overnight trip. Besides, you look like you could use the company."

"I look that depressed?" Katara wondered. Maybe I do need the company, she thought.

Aang's eyes suddenly brightened. "Come on," he said, extending his hand towards her. "I know just the thing to cheer you up."

A few hours later, Katara and Aang exited the crowded theater and Katara smiled.

"Best play I've been to so far," she said.

"It's the _only_ play you've been to," Aang pointed out. "The one we saw before the comet was so bad it doesn't even count."

"I liked this one."

"I knew you would. It was based on a Water Tribe legend. Suki wanted to see it, but Sokka kept telling her it would be bad."

"Sokka never appreciated those things, or if he did, he had a funny way of showing it," Katara said. She laughed to herself. "Thanks for bringing me, Aang."

He just smiled and motioned for her to follow him.

They spent the rest of the day together, walking through the town, practicing waterbending (which no longer bored Katara now that Aang was there), and watching the sunset and later, the stars. It was a long time before either one of them went to sleep, but when they finally did, Katara fell into a peaceful slumber with the realization that her off day hadn't been so…off after all. It had been perfect, in spite of everything that had happened earlier that morning.

Even years later, when she was an old woman and her memories began to fade, she still remembered the day clearly as one of the best days of her life.


	9. Falling Into You

_Disclaimer: I don't own ATLA_

* * *

**IX. Falling Into You**

_I'm falling into you  
This dream could come true  
And it feels so good falling into you_

~Celine Dion, Falling Into You

The mist was still lingering in the air when Katara left the house and began walking towards the infirmary at the center of the village. A few golden leaves drifted on the cool breeze whispering reminders that autumn was quickly approaching. Katara smiled to herself. She loved autumn in the Earth Kingdom. The colors, the weather, everything was pleasant. It was definitely better than the South Pole. South Pole summers were still cold enough to be considered winter and there wasn't much to do down there besides hunting or going boating, or practicing her waterbending.

The little Earth Kingdom village suddenly loomed before her and Katara smiled as she saw people running about with tools and women dishing out food for breakfast. The little town was only one of many that she and her friends had stopped in to help with reparations; during the war, the little town had almost been razed to the ground save for the infirmary and some thatched huts. Most of the buildings were still standing on their foundations, but they were in such dilapidated conditions, no one could possibly live in them.

It's a good thing Zuko and Aang decided to stop here, she thought, surveying the crumbling structure that was supposed to be a house but looked more like an abandoned hut that nature had taken over. The people couldn't have held out much longer without a decent place to live.

"Master Katara, you came!" one woman cried, elated. "We didn't think you'd come."

"I overslept," the waterbender admitted. "Where's my brother?"

"He's helping Avatar Aang and Firelord Zuko," the woman said, gesturing to the building they were repairing near the infirmary.

Katara smiled and thanking the woman, made her way over to the others.

"So it finally happened," Sokka said.

"What?" his sister asked.

"For once in my life, I got up before you."

"Because _someone_ didn't wake me up," Katara said, shooting an accusatory glance at Suki who had just joined them.

"It was all his fault," Suki said, pointing to Aang. "He told me not to."

Katara raised an eyebrow and Aang grinned.

"You and Toph looked so tired, we thought we'd let you sleep in," he explained.

"Toph sleeps in everyday," Katara reminded, chuckling. "So what's the agenda for today?"

"The usual," Zuko said. "And some babysitting."

"Babysitting?" Katara laughed. "You're going to babysit?"

"Someone has to watch the kids while their mothers work," Zuko said, offended. "Besides, I'm great with kids."

"Really? What else don't we know about you, Zuko?"

"He's going to teach me how to firebend," one of the little village boys piped up. He grinned widely. "I'm going to be the best firebending earthbender ever."

Zuko chuckled. "Sorry, buddy, but if you're an earthbender, you can only bend earth."

"Aw man," the little boy looked crestfallen and when Zuko looked up, there was an amused expression on Katara's face and when he asked her why, she just laughed and walked away.

* * *

Mai was glad to be away from the Fire Nation for once. She was getting tired of Zuko's incessant ranting on how boring the peace talks were and how the officials could be so uncompromising over some trivial matters so when Zuko proposed to help in the Earth Kingdom, she gladly accepted. Even if she didn't particularly like this village, she was glad to get away and glad for the change. She didn't really enjoy rebuilding the town, but there were some good things that came with helping, she realized. If nothing else, she at least got to spend more time with Zuko.

Being away from home seemed to do wonders for the young Firelord. Mai noticed he was less irritated and more at ease with the villagers, probably because he could relate to them. He seemed happy and cheerful, and there was a certain spring to his step. She never heard him complain about the people, only the work but rebuilding an entire town was grueling work. And though Mai wasn't one for overly cheerful people, she thought she could get used to the new Zuko.

* * *

Katara sat on the steps of the infirmary and quickly healed one of the village girls who had cut herself on a sharp, fallen tree branch. It was evening, and the sun was slowly moving closer to the horizon, so most of the healers in the infirmary had journeyed out into the town to help with any last minute tasks before the day ended, leaving Katara in charge. There weren't too many people who came into the infirmary at this time, so Katara didn't mind.

As soon as the little girl was all healed, she scurried away and joined several other children under the shade of a tree, where Zuko was trying to keep them occupied while their parents worked. He seemed to have his hands full trying to maintain over a dozen children and Katara thought about helping him, but Aang was quicker. He offered to mind some of the children for Zuko and Katara saw the young Firelord flash him a grateful smile.

"Can you teach me how to fly?" one of the little boys asked, fiddling with a stick that was supposed to resemble Aang's glider. The airbender laughed and gently pried the object away from the boy before he hit anyone.

"Sorry, little guy," he said, ruffling the boy's hair. "But you need to be an airbender to fly with a glider."

"So I can never fly?" the boy asked as a look of disappointment worked its way across his face. He hung his head and sniffled.

"How would you like to fly on Appa?" Aang asked, and the little boy looked at him eagerly and nodded vigorously.

"What about us?" the other children chimed. "Can we?"

Aang looked at Appa and the bison grunted as if he had given his consent. Within minutes, half the children had clambered up to sit in his saddle and Appa was flying before Aang even had time to check on the children. Zuko was trying to control the remaining kids and trying to convince them that they would get their turn, but it wasn't easy and even from where she was, Katara could hear their loud protests.

After flying around for a few minutes, Appa landed and the rest of the children rushed to get on and once again, the bison took off and began flying in circles. Katara wondered if it made them all dizzy, but the village kids didn't seem to mind at all. In fact, they seemed to be having lots of fun. Even Zuko and Aang seemed to be having a good time. Katara watched the young airbender with kids and laughed softly to herself. Every time she saw him with them, it was like falling in love all over again. She didn't even know if that was possible, but when it came love, she figured she was still relatively inexperienced.

She didn't know how long Appa gave the children rides, or how long Zuko and Aang watched them, but it was a long time before the two were able to convince the kids that Appa needed to rest and that they could do something else for fun. By the time they managed to divert the kids' attention from Appa to something else, it was time to send the kids home with their parents. Zuko and Aang looked exhausted, but they were both laughing over something Katara couldn't quite hear.

"It doesn't look easy, does it?" A young woman asked coming to stand beside Katara and watching the kids go home.

"No," the waterbender agreed ruefully, shaking her head. "It doesn't." But she had to admit, Aang was good with kids; even Zuko was. She hadn't really thought he was one for kids.

The young woman sighed. "We'll be doing that one day. Oh the joys of motherhood."

Katara laughed. Someone's very enthusiastic, she thought.

"If only I fell in love with a man like that but love is a strange thing," the young woman said, laughing to herself. The waterbender gave her a confused look, but she didn't bother to elaborate. "Something tells me that those two will be good fathers."

Katara grinned. "I'm sure they will."

That night, Katara fell asleep dreaming that she and Aang were having an argument over whose turn it was to watch their kids.

_Falling like a leaf  
Falling like a star  
Finding a belief  
Falling where you are  
Falling into you  
Falling into you  
Falling into you_

_~Celine Dion_

* * *

_Thanks for all the reviews!_

_~Cassidy Alice_


	10. Secret

_Disclaimer: I don't own ATLA_

* * *

**X. Secret**

"_One of the hardest things in life is having words in your heart that you can't utter."_

~ James Earl Jones

Suki was mad. Furious was probably a better word, but it was still the same thing. Katara watched her friend eagerly, mildly surprised that the Kyoshi warrior was being so blunt with the shopkeeper. It wasn't everyday she got into a fight with a merchant over something as trivial as groceries, but Katara understood exactly why she was arguing with him; the man was asking for an outrageous price for the fruit. The sign above his goods said the fruits were worth a few silver pieces but he was asking for nearly triple that amount and Suki left his shop in minutes.

The walk back to the house they all shared was quiet. Suki was still seething and Katara was in no mood to incur her wrath again. She'd been in one or two arguments with Suki before and had learned enough from them to know that when it came to certain things, the young woman could be quite uncompromising. It was best not to upset her when she was in an already foul mood. Unfortunately, Sokka picked that day to be blissfully unaware of the Kyoshi warrior's bad mood and as she walked in, teased her about something Katara didn't understand.

An inside joke, the waterbender thought as her brother burst into laughter. Suki just looked daggers at him. Katara shook her head, wondering how Sokka could be so oblivious sometimes. He wasn't stupid and despite what some people said, Sokka was skilled in many things Katara was not, but still, the waterbender marveled at his capacity for always getting into sticky situations.

"What did I do?" Sokka groaned as Suki snapped at him. When she didn't respond, Sokka stalked after her and for a while, Katara could hear their muffled voices in a heated argument. She rubbed her head, trying to alleviate the headache that was slowly forming, but it was no use, so she just shoved the groceries into their proper places and disappeared outside.

"Are those two still at it?" Toph asked. Her hand was pointing towards the room Suki and Sokka were arguing in and Katara nodded. The blind earthbender sighed. "I'll be somewhere around town if you need me. These vibrations are driving me insane."

"Tell me about it," Katara muttered as Toph walked away. Even from here she could hear the faint murmur that was the argument. She set off for the lake, intent on practicing her waterbending, but was stopped by a rather flustered airbender who looked exhausted.

"Have you seen Suki?" He asked. "I've been looking all over the place for her."

"Yeah. She's at home. Why?"

"I met someone today who was interested in becoming a Kyoshi warrior. I promised her I'd ask Suki about it, but I haven't seen her at all."

"She's at home," Katara replied. "But I wouldn't go in there if I were you."

"Why not?"

"She's mad and you know how she gets sometimes."

He _did _know. Aang had seen Sokka after several of their fights and the poor warrior always looked despondent, as if he had lost a game.

"I don't know how she does it," Sokka had said. "But she wins the argument every time."

Aang sighed. "I guess it'll have to wait then."

Katara nodded but invited him to join her practice in the meantime. They found a secluded spot along the lake, away from the other villagers and set to work practicing their forms. The water was cool and relaxing, a much needed respite from the heat that was pressing down upon them. In spite of that, they didn't stay in the water long; only a half hour at the most. When they were done practicing, they walked around the lake and talked. Katara was glad to be away from Sokka and Suki's argument and glad to stretch her legs. But she was overjoyed to be spending time with Aang. Even if they lived in the same house, it was hard to be alone and talk with several other people always doing something or the other.

At some point during their walk, Katara spotted a younger couple holding hands and strolling in the distance and she gave a small smile.

"I envy them sometimes."

"What? Who?"

"People like them in general," she admitted, gesturing inconspicuously to the couple up ahead.

"Why?" Aang asked.

"They're so happy, carefree, like they have nothing to worry about. I know it's not true, but it definitely feels that way when we have to worry about how we're going to restore the world."

Aang chuckled. "I never thought you'd be envious of people like that."

Katara shrugged. "I've been jealous of lots of people," she said, nonchalantly.

"Really? Like who?"

"Um…" Katara thought for a moment before replying. "Those girls we met the first time we landed on Kyoshi Island."

"But they were little girls," Aang protested. "Why on earth would you be jealous of them?"

"You were spending all your time with them," Katara said, a faint blush coloring her cheeks. She thought it was embarrassing. "I thought you'd forget about me."

"Highly unlikely," Aang responded. "But who else?"

"There was that girl, the one you danced with at the party we threw."

Aang raised an eyebrow at the mention of the Fire Nation schoolgirl they had met on one of their travels during the war. She had been one of the nicer people he had encountered, but he never thought dancing with her would have made Katara jealous.

"On Ji? Why were you jealous of her?"

"I don't know," Katara replied. "You seemed to be having such a good time with her and she really liked your company. I could tell."

Aang was about to protest and point out that he had offered to dance with her at the party because he wanted to more than anything, but Katara just laughed.

"You know, Sokka even said you two looked good together. I didn't want to admit it at the time, but he was right."

"And?"

Katara sighed. "Well…nothing. He _was_ right. And I was jealous because of that."

"Well I _wanted_ to dance with you. I only asked On Ji out of politeness."

Katara smiled. "I liked dancing," she said. "It made me forget about On Ji and…"

"What?" Aang pressed.

"She looked like she was having the time of her life," Katara said.

She probably was, Aang thought, considering her controlling boyfriend.

"She didn't have to keep the truth a secret. I was just afraid she would tell you what I…what I couldn't."

"Oh." Aang sighed. It was always words that got in the way of expressing something. It had been words that had ruined any chance he had at Ember Island. But then again, it had been three simple words that they had exchanged many months later that had made all the difference.

"I really wanted to," Katara said, earnestly. "But after the invasion and Ember Island, I just couldn't." It seemed so odd that she could take down some of the toughest people in the world, but when it had come to admitting her feelings before the Avatar, she was useless. She never had been able to tell him exactly how she felt until after the war, and she wondered if that even counted because they hadn't really _said_ anything. It had taken a good few days before she actually admitted her true feelings, in words, not just a kiss.

In retrospect, perhaps being envious of certain people because of their relationship with Aang was probably foolish and not something she usually did, but there had been times, moments when she felt like someone else had beaten her to telling the Avatar how they felt. It wasn't uncommon; even now, every once in a while, some girl popped up to tell Aang (or even Zuko and Sokka) how crazy they were about him. But Katara had never been good at expressing her feelings like that; it was the whole reason she had run away on Ember Island. So she had kept everything a secret.

It probably wasn't the best idea and it certainly wasn't easy to keep all those feelings bottled up inside herself, but she had done it because she thought, somehow, it would help. Looking back, she realized, that it had caused more problems than it solved. But at least she had told him the truth: she really did love him.

"You're not still jealous, are you?" Aang teased, noticing she had suddenly fallen silent and looked rather glum.

"No." Katara shook her head, laughing. She most definitely was _not _jealous,

"And you're not keeping any secrets right?"

"No, I'm not."

They both broke out laughing.

"Keeping secrets is not easy," she said at length.

"No," Aang agreed. "It's not but some of the best-kept secrets are the ones worth revealing."

* * *

_Thanks for all the reviews! You're all amazing! ^-^_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	11. Masquerade

_Disclaimer: I don't own ATLA_

* * *

**XI. Masquerade**

_Love is just love. It can never be explained._

~ Unknown

"A masquerade ball?" Katara repeated. "Tonight?"

Zuko and Mai nodded simultaneously. "It's an old Fire Nation custom," Zuko explained. "Each year, the Firelord would throw a masquerade ball and invite everyone in the city. The tradition kind of stopped once Firelord Sozin took over, but we're trying to bring it back."

"But what are we supposed to wear? It's not like we had time to get ready for this beforehand."

"Don't you have something from your travels around the world?" Mai asked.

"Not much and nothing that's like a costume."

"I'm sure you'll find something. I think Sokka's already got an outfit picked out."

"Suki must have helped him."

"Don't worry, Katara. You've still got plenty of time to think of something," Mai said, reassuring her.

"I don't have anything to wear," Katara told Aang a few hours later as they sat in her room. "The ball starts in a few hours and I won't have a costume."

"Yes you will," Aang said, disappearing down the corridor and returning a few minutes later with a box. He opened the lid and handed it to Katara.

"They're just clothes," she pointed out and Aang shook his head. Katara reached inside and pulled out a red robe, a veil, a hat, and several other items. She blinked in surprise, and Aang beamed.

"I knew we saved some of the stuff somewhere," he said. "Sokka's Wang Fire disguise is gone, though. I don't know what happened to it."

"But this is…I can't wear this," Katara pointed out.

"Why not?"

"Well…I…it feels wrong. I can't be the Painted Lady again."

"Of course you can."

Katara shook her head and began packing everything into the box. She didn't think Zuko and Mai would appreciate it if she showed up to their ball dressed like a spirit. Everyone would be wearing something elegant and she'd be dressed in something that looked more like rags than a costume.

Katara just sighed. "Maybe I won't go," she said, sitting down on her bed. "I'll find something to do."

"Katara, there's nothing wrong with the Painted Lady outfit. You should just wear it. The Masquerade Ball isn't formal. People wear whatever they want."

"But…I don't have the paint," Katara pointed out.

Aang grinned. "I think I can fix that." He disappeared out the door a second time, leaving a bemused Katara to wonder what he was going to do.

By the time Aang had returned an hour later, Katara was gazing at herself in the mirror. Her long hair was styled and the hat with the veil was tilting precariously on her head. She looked exactly like she had when they had destroyed the Fire Nation factory that had wreaked havoc on the fishing village. But something was wrong. Katara didn't look happy.

"What's wrong?"

"I feel bad," Katara said, sighing. "Like I'm deceiving everyone again."

"It's like a costume party," Aang pointed out. "It's not like you're actually going to destroy another factory or anything." Katara didn't say anything and Aang sighed. "If it makes you feel any better, other people are dressing up as spirits and dragons, and other mythological creatures."

Katara stared at the paint and then at Aang. "Where did you get the paint from?" She asked, going off on a tangent.

"Some vendor," Aang admitted, watching Katara paint herself. "He was more than happy to let me buy it after I told him why I needed it."

"What did you tell him?" Katara asked, applying more paint.

"He thought it was for me," he said. "It was all I could do to convince him I needed it for a friend." Katara burst out laughing, smearing some of the paint on her face. She frowned.

"I messed it up," Katara said, looking at her reflection in the mirror. The red paint on her face was smeared and was beginning to run. She hurriedly wiped it off and began doing it again. Aang watched her repeat the process several times before offering to help her.

"Hold still," he admonished as he wiped the paint off her face with his sleeve. Katara blushed and complied. When the airbender was all finished, she began painting her face again, but her hands were unsteady and shaking and Katara, for the life of her, couldn't figure out what was wrong with her.

Aang took the paint from her after she nearly dropped it. "Close your eyes," he ordered and Katara obeyed. The paint was cool against her eyelids and his touch was even cooler. Katara shivered and felt her face flush. She prayed he didn't notice.

It took Aang several minutes to help Katara. She had done most of the painting herself, but here and there some of the paint had smeared, so he carefully wiped it clean. Katara sat rigidly still the entire time, her eyes closed and holding her breath. She tried not to think about Aang, but it wasn't really working. So she focused on staying completely still while the Avatar wiped the last of the unnecessary paint off her face. Was it just her imagination, or did his fingers linger there for a moment longer?

"All done," he said at last and Katara opened her eyes and released a breath she didn't know she had been holding. She walked over to the mirror and gazed in surprise at her reflection. The paint was the same color and the designs were the same, but something was different. She thought she was barely recognizable, that there was no semblance between her and the beautiful girl who was reflected in the mirror.

For a while, all Katara could do was stare. She didn't know what Aang had done, but she felt different. It wasn't the kind of feeling that bothered her; in fact, she rather enjoyed it. But she was still curious as to what the airbender did. When she turned around to ask him, she was surprised to find his gaze was still on her.

"Is something wrong?" she asked quietly, wondering why he was staring at her like that.

"Your eyes," he said. "They're so blue."

She cast a sidelong glance at her reflection. Her eyes _did _seem more blue than usual.

"Maybe it's just the paint," She said, softly. "Maybe I should take some off."

"No," he said, grabbing her hand before her fingers brushed some paint away. "It's fine. You look…"

"Like a spirit?"

Aang shook his head. "Beautiful."

For a moment, she was reminded of what he had said when she had actually disguised herself as the Painted Lady. _You're very pretty for a spirit_. Katara glanced back at her reflection before speaking.

"Thanks, but I think the Painted Lady is much prettier."

"I don't think so," he said, quietly and she flushed for what seemed like the hundredth time that evening. He said it so simply, as if was the most obvious thing in the world.

"What are you going to wear?" she asked, changing the subject.

"I don't know," Aang admitted, glancing down at his hands and sleeves which were covered in paint. He hadn't really thought much about anything, because he had been too focused on Katara. Even though he had seen her like this before, there was something spellbinding about her. He wanted so badly to kiss her, but he didn't want to ruin the face paint. He felt like he could watch her for hours but he knew he couldn't, so he stood up and made his way to the door.

"I should probably go," he said. Katara wondered if she imagined the reluctance she heard in his voice. Oddly enough, she didn't want him to go, but he had already opened the door and was halfway out when Sokka burst in dressed in his Wang Fire outfit.

"So what do you think of my masquerade?" he asked, stroking his fake beard. "Is it…?" He stopped when he saw Katara. "Wow, Katara. You look amazing." Actually, he thought amazing wasn't a strong enough word, but he didn't tell her that.

By then, Katara was sure the color of her face matched the red paint on it. "Thanks, Sokka."

"The party starts in a few minutes," Sokka said, glancing at some early arrivals through the window. "We should probably get going."

Katara nodded, surprised to find Aang gone. I didn't even thank him, she thought as Sokka walked out the door. She closed her eyes and if she thought hard enough, she could still feel Aang's cool hands on her skin as he slowly but carefully painted her face.

"I think you have the best costume by far," Suki said to Katara once the ball had started. "You look wonderful, not like me. I didn't even bother to dress up. I'm just wearing my regular Kyoshi uniform."

"Thanks, but I can't take all the credit. I think Mai and Toph have better outfits," Katara said, pointing to the blind earthbender and the warrior who were dressed in elegant outfits. Toph was wearing the same gown she had worn to the Earth King's party for his bear and she had a huge grin on her face. Zuko, who stood next to her, looked depressed as he handed a small bag to her. Toph tucked it into her sleeves, and using her fan to cover her smirk, practically floated over to Katara and Suki.

"What was that all about?" Suki asked.

"Zuko bet I wouldn't dress up for the event. It was too good of an offer to pass up," she laughed. "You should have seen his face when I won."

The rest of the evening passed in a blur of socializing and politely declining dance offers. Katara spent the entire evening trying to find Aang, but she couldn't find him anywhere. Zuko had been very vague when he said the Avatar said was around somewhere. How many hiding places are there in a ballroom? Katara wondered.

By the time she saw Aang, the party was disbanding and she had long ago given up trying to find him and disappeared to stand in front of the fountain. She was slowly removing the paint when he came to stand next to her.

"What are you doing?" he asked gazing at her. It was dark and her veil obstructed his view, so all he saw was Katara's hands moving back and forth underneath the hazy material.

"Removing the paint," Katara replied, scooping up more water in her hand.

"You're not doing a very good job," Aang noted, laughing. "Let me help you." Before she could protest, he had pushed aside her veil and was gently removing the paint. This time, Katara didn't shiver when his hands began removing the paint from her face. She felt relaxed and reveled in the warmth of his touch, though it wasn't a cool night.

"All done," Aang said, smiling, several minutes later. Katara glanced at her reflection in the water. Not a single trace of paint remained. "You look even prettier now."

Katara looked at him with wide eyes. He read the surprise hidden in them and suppressed a laugh.

"You know, I never really thanked you for helping me," Katara said, hastily changing the subject.

"You didn't have to," Aang replied.

"But…" Katara began and suddenly his lips were on hers. Any thoughts she had on protesting completely vanished.

By the time Katara and Aang returned inside, the guests had all left and the others sat around a table discussing their evening. When the Avatar and the waterbender joined them, no one questioned why Aang's hands were stained with paint, why Katara was so distracted or why every time their gazes met, the two kept smiling and laughing.

* * *

_Thank you to everyone who reviewed! ^-^_

_~Cassidy Alice_


	12. Belong

_Disclaimer: I don't own ATLA_

* * *

**XII. Belong**

_A house is made of walls and beams_

_A home is built with love and dreams._

~ Unknown

For the middle of nowhere, this place is not that bad, Katara reflected as she watched Zuko stoke the campfire. She and the others were huddled around a small fire in the middle of some unknown forest, enjoying the last day of their vacation before Zuko and Mai returned to the Fire Nation, Toph to Gaoling, and Suki to Kyoshi Island. Katara wasn't really looking forward to leaving her friends, but it was comforting to know that it was only for a short while and really just to tie up some loose ends. It seemed so strange to be splitting up though. After Toph leaves, it'll just be me, Sokka, Suki, and Aang, she realized. She didn't know if that was good or bad.

"I can't believe I'm finally going home after all this time," Toph said, her sightless green eyes fixed on the campfire. Katara glanced at Toph in surprise. There was a hint of excitement in her voice and Katara began wondering. Toph had never expressed any enthusiasm to return to Gaoling.

"Are you sad?" Suki asked, noticing her demeanor change slightly.

"Are you kidding? I can't wait. I love travelling and saving the world was fun, but I think it's time I went home to fix things up with my parents."

"What if they don't let you leave again?" the Kyoshi warrior wondered.

Toph shrugged. "I'll run away again. I know it'll be hard on them, but now that I've been all over the place, there's no way I can go back to being shut away from the world again."

Suki smiled, knowingly.

"It's going to be so strange not seeing everyone," Mai said. "I don't know how, but I've gotten used to all of you."

Sokka grinned. "That's because we're not evil Fire Nation royalty trying to control you in every possible way."

"Sometimes, I think I'd prefer Azula to you and your bad jokes," Mai muttered and Sokka scowled. Mai shook her head, but there was the tiniest smile on her face. Zuko shook with silent laughter beside her and Katara joined in.

"I can't believe I'm saying this," Zuko said. "But I'm really going to miss you guys."

Toph smiled. "Trust me; you won't miss us that much. You've gotten so used to us, we're like family."

"Besides my uncle, you guys are the closest thing to family I have. I know my father and Azula are still around, but they're in prison and I think they'd rather see me dead than consider me as part of the family."

"Well, we don't," Toph pointed out. "If it makes any difference."

"It strange, isn't it?" Sokka said, thoughtfully. "I never really thought much about it, but we really _are _like a family."

It was strange, but now that Katara thought of it, the others were her family as much as her father and grandparents were. Together, they were a motley crew: three warriors, an earthbender, a firebender, a waterbender and the Avatar. It was a strange and unconventional family, but Katara knew she wouldn't trade them for anyone else. She still found it strange that after being hunted down by Zuko and occasionally, Mai, she still considered them family. She certainly had enough reasons to hate Zuko and even a few to hold a grudge against Mai, but they were still part of the odd family that they all comprised.

Katara smiled to herself. Sometimes, they certainly acted like a family, always arguing and fighting over things. Especially Sokka and Zuko.

"I'm actually looking forward to going back," Zuko said. "I love vacations, but there's so much that needs to be done and I've got some great ideas and…"

"We get it," Sokka said. "Glad you're happy to go back to work, Zuko."

"Some of us aren't," Suki said, pointedly. "I've got a mountain load of stuff to do back home and a bunch of new girls to train."

"Oh don't worry," Katara said, speaking up for the first time. "Sokka will help. After all, he loves dressing up in warrior's clothes."

Sokka buried his face in his hands and Suki giggled. "That's what I'm afraid of."

Later, after they had all disbanded, Katara and Aang sat on their sleeping bags some distance away from the others, partly hidden by the shrubbery and watched the stars. It was rather late, but neither of them seemed to mind. A few fluffy clouds floated lazily overhead and Katara idly wondered what it was like to jump on a cloud. She laughed at the memory of Aang trying it during their travels.

"What's so funny?" Aang asked.

"I was just thinking about the time you jumped into a cloud to see what it was like," she replied.

"Looking back, it probably wasn't the smartest thing I did."

"No, it definitely wasn't," Katara agreed.

"Hey, at least I didn't steal a waterbending scroll," he pointed out.

"Well, where did you think the pirates got it from?" she shot back. "They must have taken it from one of the Water Tribes."

"Probably," he conceded. "Speaking of the Water Tribe, are you going back home?"

"I don't know," Katara admitted. She should have found the question a little strange since she and Sokka had planned on going with him to Kyoshi Island to drop Suki off, but she knew why he was asking. Even though Sokka hadn't said anything, they both knew that he was likely to change his mind.

"You're not miserable, are you?" Aang asked, half-joking, half serious as she released a sigh.

Katara shook her head. She missed her family, but she certainly wasn't miserable with Aang. She honestly didn't know if she was ready to go home, though. She had always assumed that the others, or at least Aang, would accompany her, but now, she wasn't so sure. Would he even want to go back to the South Pole with her? And more importantly, would she want to go back? Now that she had seen the world, she wasn't so sure if she could resign herself to the monotony of life in the South Pole. She wasn't sure she could leave Aang either. She cast a glance at Sokka and Suki. They were sitting some distance away, wrapped in their sleeping bags and talking in hushed tones. She knew Sokka wouldn't return home if he didn't have to, unless Suki came with him.

"Where do you want to go?" Katara asked.

Aang shrugged. "I don't really mind where we go."

"You said we," Katara noted.

"You didn't think I was going to leave you, did you?"

"Well, I just assumed…"

"I'll only leave if you tell me to."

Katara laughed. When had she ever been able to tell him to leave? "I don't think that's going to happen."

"Good," he chuckled. "Because I don't think I was going to leave."

"Who am I to argue with that?" She smiled and suddenly yawned. She hadn't realized how sleepy she was.

"We should probably go to sleep," Aang said softly, noticing that all the others except for Zuko and Mai had fallen asleep and that Katara could barely keep her eyes open.

Katara nodded. "We probably should."

"Do you want to go home?" Aang asked, as he crawled into his sleeping bag. It had been a long time since Katara had seen her family and though she hid it well, he could tell she missed her family.

Katara thought for a moment. She wouldn't have minded going back home, but she wasn't particularly anxious to leave for the South Pole. Home, she realized, didn't always mean being with parents and extended family members. Home was being surrounded by people you loved and people who loved you. It reminded her of the old saying. _Home is where the heart is_.

Katara slipped into her sleeping bag, and curling up beside Aang, let out a small laugh. "I _am_ home," she whispered before drifting off to sleep.


	13. Anonymous

_Disclaimer: I don't own ATLA_

* * *

**XIII. Anonymous**

"_Love knows no limit to its endurance, no end to its trust, no fading of its hope; it can outlast anything. Love still stands when all else has fallen."_

~Unknown

You must be pretty desperate if you're reading this. Who are you? Are you a bender? I'd like to know, but as you can tell, I'll never know who you are or where you are.

You must be curious as to who I am. Or perhaps not. Such things like names hardly matter. Let's just say I was once desperate too.

You wouldn't like to hear the tale, would you? Such a silly question. You must want to hear, or in this case read it, since you've gotten this far. Or are you just reading because there's nothing better to do? If that's the case, please don't stop reading. I can't promise you'll like it, but perhaps it can help you.

As I said before, you must be desperate if you've come to this place. I've seen people here one or two times, recently. I used to come to this place years ago, when I was younger. It was a sanctuary for us. It's a nice place, don't you think? I've always liked hidden lagoons.

Do you see that wall running around the perimeter? It's incomplete. Each time someone comes, they place a stone on it and before they leave, they hide a note tucked in one the many recesses in the wall. You must have noticed that since it was how you discovered my letter. Take your time to read some of the notes others have left behind. Who knows? It might be helpful.

In any case, I'm straying from the point. Each note has something important written on it. We learn from our mistakes and from those of others. Most of us who've left our notes here did so because we thought it could somehow help you. That is why I've left this note for you to find.

You must have heard of the Cave of Two Lovers by now. Well, on behalf of myself and all the other anonymous souls who seek solitude here, welcome to the Lagoon of Desperate Lovers. Don't ask me who came up with the name. I certainly didn't. And in any case, it's not really appropriate to term such a beautiful place like this as a place for desperate lovers, is it? Regardless of the name, this is where countless confused lovers have come. I don't know why, but somehow or other, it's where we all wound up (yes, I was about as confused and as desperate as you are). In fact…

Spirits, I'm terribly sorry for rambling like this. You must be waiting for this whole tale to get a little bit more exciting or at least start. Well, I'll begin, but I don't know if you'll really like it.

Love is a strange thing, don't you agree? Even after all these years, I still don't understand much about love. But love is powerful. Some say it's overrated and it just leaves you with a broken heart, etc. Of course that's true but as they say, sometimes the joys of life wouldn't be so sweet without the sorrows.

So here begins my tale. I was confused. So terribly perplexed. I had fallen deeply, madly in love. It wasn't infatuation or some sort of crush. It was true love. Believe me, you'll know true love when you find it. And I had found it. But people said we couldn't be together.

Now I ask you, what kind of person tells two young people hopelessly in love with each other, that they cannot have the one thing they want? I've always done things for others, hardly for myself. I enjoy helping others so I never once complained about not doing anything for myself. But when I fell in love, everyone was shocked.

I'll tell you right now, I'm not a King or Queen, Prince or Princess. Nor am I the Avatar or some aristocrat from one of the four nations. I'm just me, a normal person leading a normal life. Therefore, you can imagine why I was so confused when everyone acted like falling in love was a sin.

They said all sorts of things. We weren't compatible, we didn't look good together, it wouldn't last, we'd bring each other down, anything to separate us. I know better than to believe it now and I knew better than to believe it then, but when so many people are against you, it's not easy. Slowly, their words begin affecting you and you end up doing just what they wanted.

In a way, I did. I began wondering. What if those people were right? What if we weren't really compatible? What if we really did bring each other down? And so I spent hours hiding in the lagoon, trying to sort out my mind. I thought of running away. I was in love, but if we were going to bring each other down, was there any point in pursuing a relationship?

If you're laughing, please, don't be sorry. As I write this, I'm laughing. It was a stupid question, but I asked myself that very same question over and over again. What is the use of loving someone if everyone is against you and you're only going to bring each other down?

So we grew distant. It was harder to talk and we hardly spent any time with each other. I won't lie and say I was strong. Maybe initially I was, but after two days, I cried myself to sleep every night. I convinced myself I was doing the right thing. It's so terribly hard to do the right thing sometimes, isn't it?

I've always found comfort outside, in lonely spots like cliff sides, hidden lagoons, forest clearings, and the like. It was in one of these forest clearings that I met her, a young woman wearing a black cloak with a hood hiding much of her face. I'd love more than anything to tell you her name, but she made me promise that I wouldn't reveal who she was. I never knew why. Maybe she was physic and knew I was going to write this down. Who knows?

Anyway, the said person and I fell to talking. At first it was just the usual pleasantries that two strangers meeting might exchange, but then she asked me what I was doing in the middle of the forest. She was very easy to talk to and I told her _everything_. I half expected her to just laugh at me and tell me to just move on, but she sympathized with me. She said she understood.

She was a very mysterious person. She never told me much of her tale; I didn't even figure out who she was until she had disappeared. She said she had fallen in love with a powerful man. I didn't know if she meant he was a powerful bender, or if he wielded a great deal of political power. She said people had said the same things about them. People made up things like that about everyone.

"You just have to ignore them and learn to live with it," she had said. "It's not easy and it's certainly not pleasant to endure, but it's something that must be done."

"But how?" I had asked. "How can someone be expected to lead a happy life when everyone is against them."

"Because love is supposed to endure everything and anything. Take it from someone who knows. You can't attempt to please everyone. Besides, you're living your life, not someone else's. Do what you want, not what others say."

So true. It really was such a pity that I never properly thanked my anonymous friend. Her words were absolutely right, but all I could manage to say was, "Who are you?"

I can tell you I certainly wasn't prepared for the truth when the young woman pulled off her hood, revealing long, brown hair and blue eyes. Even now, I wonder if it's a dream. Was it possible that I had really met her?

Before I continue my tale, let me just congratulate you on coming this far. I know it wasn't a particularly exciting tale or even an interesting one. I'm sorry to disappoint you if you were expecting something dramatic, if you were waiting with bated breath for me to say I was preparing to throw myself off a cliff or something irrational like that. I wasn't and I gave you fair warning that you might not enjoy this boring story. I know it's not interesting, but even the smallest things said about you and said to you can change your life. You don't need a story about two heartbroken people preparing to end their existence to prove that it doesn't matter what others say about you. Sometimes, just a short chat with a stranger is more than enough to help a tormented lover.

So here ends my tale. People said all sorts of things about us, but we didn't listen. When two people are in love, what others say shouldn't matter. After all, love is supposed to withstand anything. We've been together ever since and I'm pleased to say this time, I've come here to drop off this note and not to mope.

As for my anonymous friend, I promised I wouldn't reveal her name, but I never promised not to give you any hints about her. She had long brown hair, blue eyes, and if I'm not mistaken, she's a waterbender connected with a rather powerful person. And by powerful, I mean a powerful bender _and_ someone who wields a great deal of political power.

Surely you can guess who I am talking about.


	14. The Gift

_Disclaimer: I don't own ATLA_

* * *

**XIV. The Gift**

_The one who loves you will make you weep._

~ Argentine Proverb

Out of all the Air Temples she had seen, Katara liked the Southern Air Temple the best. It probably had something to do with its location and that it was where Aang had spent most of his early childhood. There was a mystery attached to it, just like the Western Air Temple, and now that the Southern Air Temple had been mostly restored, Katara couldn't wait to explore it. She was especially eager to see Aang's room and all the other places she had heard so much about in his stories. Hearing and seeing were different, after all.

There was so much to do, Katara hardly knew where to start. The Southern Air Temple was like a city itself, but better than any urban setting Katara had ever been in. There must have been dozens of courtyards, countless rooms, hundreds of pathways, but the Southern Air Temple didn't feel like a city anymore than the Southern Water Tribe did.

Oddly enough, the Temple felt like home even though Katara knew she hadn't been there very many times; walking the winding pathways, exploring the vast interiors, or wandering around the grounds made her feel at relaxed and comfortable. She wondered if the surprises, though, would ever stop. It seemed like every corner she turned, she discovered something new. The one thing she hadn't discovered yet was Aang. He had vanished several hours ago and Katara wondered what he was doing. The others had already disappeared into some part of the Temple and Katara wondered what they were doing. Knowing Sokka, he had probably dragged Suki with him to find the pantry and Zuko and Mai were probably talking in some secluded area, away from the others. She had no idea where Toph had disappeared to and couldn't even begin to guess where Appa and Momo were. So, Katara was left wandering the deserted passageways of the temple, trying to find the suddenly elusive airbender. He had promised to give her a proper tour of the Temple and she intended to make sure he kept his word.

She found him feeding his sky bison on the grounds outside the temple. Appa looked content to be back in his original home and was quietly munching his hay. Katara could have sworn she saw him smile, but she wasn't too sure. Momo was nowhere to be found and Katara didn't even bother thinking of a list of places where he could be; in a place as big as the Southern Air Temple, there were a thousand places to hide for a small lemur like Momo.

"You got bored of the Southern Air Temple already?" Aang asked, when he noticed the waterbender coming towards him.

Katara shook her head. "I don't think I could ever get bored of this place. There's so much to see." She gazed at the area around her. It was a plateau-like terrain covered in soft grasses. Aside from the stable, there wasn't anything there. "Is this where Appa used to live?"

Aang nodded.

"They don't have pastures for sky bison?" Katara wondered.

"They're airbenders too, remember? The sky is their pasture."

Katara glanced up at the sky. "Oh. I forgot. Where did you learn airbending?"

Aang grinned and pointed to a smaller plateau higher up on the mountain. "Over there."

"Wasn't it dangerous?" she asked.

"Maybe," Aang replied. "But by the time most airbenders got to practice there, they had mastered enough airbending to use the gliders without getting hurt. If not, there were plenty of older monks to help us out."

"Must be quite a view from up there," she said, softly. Her cerulean eyes had a faraway look.

"Do you want to go up there?"

Katara looked at him uncertainly. "How are we going to get up there? Appa's resting and you don't have your glider."

He smiled. "We climb."

"But…"

"How do you think some of the younger kids who were still learning basic airbending got up there?"

"I don't know," Katara said, eyeing the mountain side skeptically. "It looks dangerous."

"It's not really," Aang said. Katara sighed and gave in, allowing him to lead her there. The climb took a few minutes but it was easy and the view was well worth the journey there. From the small plateau, it was easy to see several courtyards and parts of the Temple. The clouds looked so much closer, as if reaching out and touching them would be the easiest thing in the world.

"How high up are we?" Katara asked, peering down below. The mountain started hundreds of feet below them. It was an immense drop. Katara took several steps back.

"Pretty high up."

"It's a long drop," she noted.

"That's why it's perfect for airbending," Aang pointed out. Katara looked warily at the edge of the plateau and Aang smiled.

"Don't worry," he said, noticing her apprehension. "You won't fall off."

"You sure about that?"

"Do you really think I'd bring you up here if I thought you'd fall off?"

Katara smiled. "No, I guess not. So, what's next?"

"Next?" Aang echoed.

"You promised you'd give me a real tour," Katara reminded. "Remember?"

"Oh yeah. I did, didn't I?"

Katara nodded, grinning. "So, where are we going?"

Aang thought for a minute before smiling. "Come on," he said, taking her hand and half dragging her to a secluded part of the temple. It was all Katara could do to keep up with him. He took her through a maze of winding passageways, past several rooms and to an isolated corridor.

"It's a dead end," Katara pointed out, as Aang stopped in front of a wall.

"No, it's not." He grinned and pointed to a small stone that was protruding from the wall. He pressed it, and a slab of stone slid back to reveal a narrow passageway.

"I didn't know monks used secret passageways," Katara said, peering in. "What's at the other end?"

"Find out for yourself."

Katara stared at him suspiciously. "Is there something in there you're not telling me about?"

"Possibly," he replied, smiling.

"Is it…"

"It's nothing dangerous," Aang promised, leading her inside. The slab of wall slid back into place and Katara jumped slightly.

"For something that was nearly destroyed, this place is in pretty good condition," Katara said, as she followed Aang. "It's…"

She stopped mid-sentence and stared in shock and surprise as the darkened corridor opened into a beautiful courtyard surrounded by lush green plants and complete with several fountains and a small waterfall that fed into a pond. There were several exotic trees, heavy with strange fruit Katara had never seen and even stranger flowers.

"This place is like a paradise," she breathed. "It's amazing."

"I don't think anyone found this when the Temple was attacked. I figured you'd like it."

"Is that why you brought me here?" Katara wondered.

Aang nodded. "Since we'll be staying here for a while, I thought you might want some place to practice waterbending. Most of the other fountains here have dried up, but this place is perfect for practicing. And it's secret, so you can use it without worrying about distractions."

Katara chuckled. There were some perks to practicing away from _distractions_, namely Aang, but it didn't really help if her distraction knew where she was.

"Thanks, but you didn't have to find a place for me," she said.

He shrugged. "I wanted to. It's a gift," he said, smiling.

For a while Katara didn't say anything. She just gazed at her surroundings, marveling at how well kept and beautiful everything was and wondering what had given Aang the idea to bring her here. She remembered saying a few weeks ago, that she would miss waterbending once they reached the Southern Air Temple because there wasn't much water there. She hadn't thought anyone remembered her saying that, though. But Aang was perceptive and he often knew what she was thinking.

I really don't deserve this, she thought, her vision blurring with tears. It wasn't like she had done anything to earn a present, much less a gift as magnificent as this.

"Katara, are you crying?" Aang asked, completely baffled.

She turned to face him, her eyes shining with unshed tears. "Most guys would have just given most girls a flower."

"Yeah, I know, but you're not like most girls. Besides, how is a flower going to help you waterbend? This is a much better gift."

Katara laughed and wiped away a few tears that had managed to fall.

"You still didn't have to give me anything, much less a gift like this."

"I wanted to," he repeated.

"Thank you," she replied, hugging him. "But I really only wanted one gift, and I already got it a long time ago."

"And what gift is that?" He wondered, wrapping his arms around her.

She smiled. "You."

* * *

_Thanks for all the wonderful reviews! ^-^_

_~Cassidy Alice_


	15. Beautiful Disaster

_Disclaimer: I don't own ATLA._

* * *

**XV. Beautiful Disaster**

_True love doesn't have a happy ending because true love never ends._

~ Unknown

The Southern Air Temple was full of strange things, but Katara and Suki found the odd fruits and vegetables that grew in some gardens and in random places, the strangest of them all. The Temple was like a world in itself and there were all sorts of things they hadn't seen before. Normally, they didn't mind being so unfamiliar with everything, but the evening was fast approaching and Katara and Suki had promised to have dinner ready for the others.

The two girls actually liked cooking. Although Katara had been cooking for a long time, she enjoyed the task. She was surprised Suki enjoyed it, though. In all the time Katara had known the Kyoshi warrior, Suki had never once mentioned anything about cooking.

There only problem now, was preparing the food. It was delicious when prepared properly, but Suki and Katara had no idea how to cook the strange looking vegetables that sat on the kitchen counter or how to slice the exotic colored fruit. They would have asked Aang who was familiar with most of the strange things there, but he was helping Sokka fix the eastern wing of the temple.

"Maybe we can make something else," Suki suggested, glancing around the kitchen. It was well stocked, along with the pantry, but Katara refused to use the groceries they had bought from the last market they had visited.

"We're going to have to use these for food when we run out of the groceries, so we might as well as start learning how to cook them," she had said.

"Have you tried making soup with these?" Suki asked, picking up an oblong, red vegetable.

Katara nodded and made a face.

"I'm guessing it didn't taste good."

Katara nodded. "It was awful. Most of these things taste good just the way they are, but aside from Aang, I don't think anyone will eat them raw."

"So what are we going to do?" Suki asked, leaning against the counter.

Katara shrugged. "I don't know. I'm still surprised Sokka was okay with eating no meat and all. I kind of expected him to make a big deal about it."

Suki chuckled. "Oh, he did. Just not where you could hear him. But no worries, I took care of that."

"Really?" Katara said, amused. "How did you do that?"

Suki's eyes sparkled and she whispered something to the waterbender. "I bribed him."

Katara burst out laughing. "With what?" she demanded.

"Food, what else? Sokka mentioned something about Aang being the expert on fruit pies so I promised him I'd get the recipe and make one for him if he didn't complain. It worked like a charm."

"That's an idea," she said. "We could try and make a fruit pie."

Suki looked skeptical. "Don't you need airbending for those?"

"I don't think so," Katara replied. "But I'm not sure."

"I'm going to find ask him to help us," Suki said.

"I don't think he'll come," Katara said. "He's busy."

"But you're here," Suki pointed out. "He'll come."

Katara blushed and opened her mouth to protest, but Suki had already disappeared.

The corridors in the Southern Air Temple were eerily silent as Suki made her way to the eastern wing to look for the Avatar. There were so many rooms with so many secrets, Suki wondered how anyone could possibly live in a place as exciting as this one and focus on the teachings of monks. It must have been hard, she thought, to become a monk in a place as beautiful and as exciting as this. The one monastery she had seen long ago had looked so somber and it had been eerily silent.

She found Aang, Sokka, and Zuko repairing one of the many rooms in the temple. The ceiling had caved in and debris was lying all over the place, but the three were making quick progress. At least they were, until Sokka spotted Suki and left Zuko and Aang to talk to her.

Suki smiled apologetically to Sokka. "Sorry, Sokka, but I actually need to borrow Aang for a minute."

"Really?"

"Really," Suki said. "Otherwise we're not having dinner."

"That's not good." He said, and his stomach growled as if to accentuate his point. Suki just smiled.

"What's wrong?" Aang asked, coming to stand beside them.

"Katara and I need help," Suki admitted. "We have no idea how to…" Suki was cut short by a loud crash and the sound of several things breaking.

"What…?" Sokka began, but Suki and Aang were already gone.

When Suki and Aang entered the kitchen, they were surprised to find Katara sprawled on the floor in the corridor that connected the kitchen to the pantry, covered in all sorts of things and laughing. Her face was coated with something white which Suki guessed was flour, but her dress was stained with all sorts of juices and herbs. One of the shelves in the pantry had fallen down and Momo was huddled at the base, his tail over his eyes and his ears flattened.

"Are you okay?" Suki asked, trying not to laugh at the young waterbender before her. Katara's laughter had subsided and eyes were wide in surprise and she looked a little dazed, like she was trying to figure out what had happened.

"I think you're going to need to fix this shelf," Katara said as Aang helped her up.

"What happened?" Suki asked.

"I accidentally slipped and crashed into it," Katara admitted. "And I think I may have accidentally stepped on Momo." She knelt before the lemur and gently stroked its fur. "You okay, Momo?" He nodded in reply and scurried to pick a piece of fruit out of her hair before popping it in his mouth.

"This place is a disaster," Katara said, surveying the mess around.

Aang smiled and wiped some flour off her face. "Yeah, but it's a beautiful one."

Katara stared at him completely confused, but when he pointed to the mess, she understood what he meant. The light of the setting sun filtered in through the windows and danced on the shards of glass that had fallen to the floor. The various colorful food items that decorated the floor seemed to make them brighter.

"I guess so," Katara said. "But it won't be a pretty one to clean up."

"I'll help," Suki offered. "We can get Sokka to help to."

"Probably not the best idea," Katara said as she took a broom and began sweeping. "Once we get him into the kitchen, we might have a hard time getting him out."

Suki and Aang smiled.

The cleanup went quicker than expected, owing largely in part to the help. Aang had offered to lend a hand while Mai had taken his place to help and to spend time Zuko. Katara couldn't exactly complain that Aang was helping, but she did feel bad for letting him help. Suki, however, was thoroughly enjoying herself. Katara could tell every time she caught her eye. She had a smile on her face and her eyes were sparkling as if to say _I told you so. Aang is more than willing to help because you're here._

"Well," Suki said, at last. "Looks like we're all done here. I'm going to go help Sokka."

"But what about helping me make dinner?" Katara pointed out.

"Aang will help," Suki whispered, winking at her. Katara shook her head, but she was smiling.

Once Suki was gone, Katara turned to face the airbender. "Any chance you know how to cook with these things?" she asked, gesturing whatever fruits and vegetables remained on the counter.

Aang grinned. "Of course."

"How did the monks live off this stuff? It's so strange."

"For you, maybe. But the monks were used to it," Aang said. "There's a lot of stuff that grows up here that you won't find anywhere else." He handed her a piece of something strange and Katara eyed it dubiously before tasting it. She chewed it slowly and swallowed, making a face.

"It tastes like papaya."

Aang just laughed.

They must have spent at least a good three hours in the kitchen, but for all that, there was hardly anything ready for dinner. Aang had shown her several traditional dishes the monks had made, but they had run out of several ingredients, so when everyone was ready for dinner, there was little more than fruit left to eat. Katara had expected everyone to be disappointed, but they seemed to enjoy it. If at all they were disappointed, they hid it well.

"Another disaster," Katara sighed, later that night as she sat beside Aang. She was referring to the dinner, but it took Aang a moment to understand.

"That was hardly a disaster," he said, trying to cheer her up. "I've seen worse."

Katara gave a small smile. "I'm sure you have."

"Actually, I've been in some good ones too, if that's possible."

She shrugged. "I suppose you could be in a good disaster if everything ended well."

Aang nodded. "It did."

"So what was this good disaster?" Katara wondered, chuckling.

"Running away and ending up in that iceberg," Aang said.

"What good came out of that?" Katara teased.

"Lots," he reminded her. "I got to master the Avatar state and I helped end the war. But most importantly, I met you."

"Meeting me was a disaster?" Katara pretended to sound hurt and Aang smiled.

"Of course it was. You were so distracting. Half the reason I couldn't master the Avatar state was because of you," he teased.

Katara just stuck her tongue out at him.

"Just so you know," she said. "I never thought meeting you or falling in love was a disaster. And if it was, our story has a good ending."

"No, it doesn't," Aang said.

Katara looked at him inquiringly, but he just smiled and laced his fingers with hers.

"Our story doesn't have a good ending, because it isn't over yet."

* * *

_So many reviews! You're all wonderful! ^-^_

_~Cassidy Alice_


	16. Daddy's Little Children

_Disclaimer: I don't own ATLA._

* * *

**XVI. Daddy's Little Children**

_It is a wise father that knows his own children._

~ William Shakespeare

Hakoda shoved his hands deep into his pockets and shivered in the chilly summer weather of the South Pole. The sun was high in the sky, giving the illusion that it was late afternoon, but it was still early in the morning. The snow crunched underneath his boots as he walked swiftly towards the sea. A few of the other villagers greeted him as he walked, but most of them were still fast asleep, curled up in their warm beds.

The icy shore was mostly deserted when he arrived there. A few boats floated in the icy waters, drifting on the icy waves that lapped the shore. Bato and a few other men had already gone hunting for food and Hakoda gave a small smile. On normal days, he would have accompanied them, but today was different. He knew there wasn't any chance he'd leave when Katara and Sokka were returning home.

An icy breeze whistled through the air and Hakoda rubbed his hands together for warmth. He idly wondered how his children had changed. The last time he had seen them, they had seemed happy enough that he began to doubt they would ever return home. Hakoda chuckled to himself. Typical instincts of a parent, he thought to himself as he scanned the horizon for any sign of Appa. Only mothers and fathers worried like that.

A good half hour had elapsed before the tiny dot that was Appa became discernible on the horizon. The chief of the Southern Water Tribe had taken to pacing in circles to keep warm and counting penguins just to pass the time. But the instant he was able to make out his children, he forgot all about his boredom and the temperature which had dropped slightly.

Hakoda knew something was different the instant Katara and Sokka landed in the South Pole. He couldn't quite place his finger on what it was, but he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that something had changed. Both of his children had grown taller and leaner, but he was glad that other than that they hadn't changed much. Sokka had become every bit the warrior he had heard about and Katara looked more like her mother than he thought possible.

Katara smiled when she saw her father gazing at them. "You don't recognize us?" she teased.

Hakoda shook his head. "I was looking for a little girl and a little boy. They must be somewhere else."

Katara laughed and Hakoda joined in.

"It's good to see you two again," Hakoda said, hugging his children.

"It's good to be back," Sokka said. "And we brought old friends."

Hakoda recognized Suki, Aang, Zuko, and Mai who he had met at Zuko's coronation. A smaller figure bundled in layers of clothing and huddled underneath a parka stood next to Mai and he was mildly surprised to discover it was Toph. He hadn't expected the blind earthbender to venture onto a piece of ice where she was truly blind, but she was there in any case.

"It was Sokka and Katara's fault," She said, when Hakoda greeted her and asked her why she had decided to come. "They convinced me to."

"You'll like the South Pole," Sokka promised. "Or at least the people here."

Their walk to the house was a few minutes. Only Katara, Sokka, and Hakoda spoke; the others were far too busy admiring the newly rebuilt tribe to do anything but stare. What had once been nothing more than a group of women and children living huddled in tents was now a sprawling city that easily matched the Northern Water Tribe. Katara smiled as she walked along the icy streets. She didn't have too many memories of what the city had looked like when her mother had been alive, but the newly rebuilt city looked just like it did in whatever memories she had.

A hot meal was ready for them as they entered the house and Katara and Sokka were surprised to find their grandparents waiting for them. They hadn't heard much from Kanna or Pakku, but both of them were glad they were there.

"Made it back in one piece, I see," Pakku teased as they all sat down to enjoy the food

Sokka grinned. "Of course."

"Must have been quite an adventure," Kanna said and Sokka nodded. He told her bits and pieces of their adventures, but Kanna wanted to hear more.

"Maybe later, Gran Gran," Sokka promised. "Katara and I promised everyone we'd take them on a tour of the area."

"I'm not going," Toph pointed out. "It's pointless to take me anywhere; I can't even really see, so I'll just stay here."

"You guys go," Katara said. "I'll stay here and spend time with Gran Gran and Dad."

Sokka shrugged. "Okay."

"I hope you and Aang aren't too busy. Some of the waterbenders down here would like to see you practice later. I have a class to teach, but drop in any time." Pakku said, as he followed Sokka and the others out the door, leaving Katara, Kanna, and Hakoda alone.

"I'm surprised he'd let me," Katara muttered. "After what happened last time…"

Kanna raised an eyebrow inquiringly.

"I kind of fought with him," Katara admitted sheepishly. "He wouldn't let me train with him."

Her father and grandmother just blinked before they burst out laughing.

"How on earth did you do that?"

Katara sighed. "Long story."

"Well, we've got plenty of time," Hakoda said. "So you might as well as start from the beginning. Your grandmother's dying to hear all about your adventures and so am I."

Katara smiled and launched into her tale. She didn't leave out very many details. She told them how they had journeyed to the Southern Air Temple, the Earth Kingdom, and even to Roku's home in the Fire Nation. She left out the small details though, like how she and Sokka had gotten sick, the details about what Aunt Wu had told her about her future and some of the less memorable things she had done when trying to get Pakku to teach her waterbending. Of course, Kanna wheedled the information out of her and it wasn't long before she and Hakoda were laughing again.

"You've got spunk, Katara," her grandmother said, wiping her eyes. "I haven't laughed like that for a long time."

Katara grinned and promptly continued, describing how the siege of the Northern Water Tribe, how Zhao had tried to wipe out the moon, how Zuko hunted them, and how Aang had helped the ocean spirit save the tribe. By the time she was done, her throat was dry and she was slightly out of breath, but Hakoda and Kanna were eagerly waiting for more.

"What happened after the Siege of the Northern tribe?" Hakoda asked.

"Pakku dropped us off at General Fong's base," Katara replied. "We were supposed to help Aang learn earthbending, but the general had other plans. He wanted Aang to use the Avatar state as a weapon against the Fire Nation. The only problem was that Aang had no idea how to get in or out of the Avatar state then, much less control it."

"So what happened?" Kanna wondered.

"Oh, he forced Aang into it," Katara said, waving her hand.

"How?"

She had asked the question so quickly Katara had no time to think of an excuse.

"He…um…used someone to force him," she admitted recklessly, hoping it would satisfy their curiosity, but in only heightened it.

"Who?" Hakoda demanded.

"A…friend," she said, hastily.

"Who was it, Katara?" he asked, bluntly.

She sighed, cursing her inability to come up with convincing lies. "Me."

"General Fong used you to…?" Kanna let her voice trail away. Her eyes were wide with surprise and she was staring hard at Katara. "Do you mean that he…?"

"He was an earthbender," Katara said. "He used his earthbending on me to force Aang into the Avatar state. In the end, though, we managed to get away. We ran into a group of nomads and they took us through the Cave of Two…"

"Yes?" Kanna said, giving her granddaughter and encouraging smile.

Katara suppressed a groan. How was she going to talk herself out of this one?

"We ended up in the Cave of Two Lovers. The Fire Nation was chasing us so we decided to go through the cave. The soldiers ended up closing the entrance, so we were forced find the exit. At some point, we got separated; Sokka wound up with the nomads and I ended up with Aang and Appa."

"So how did you get out?" Kanna asked.

"We were forced to…" Katara could have kicked herself. She was describing just the things she had wanted to avoid discussing.

"Go on."

Once, long ago, Katara had heard someone use the phrase _I'm shooting myself in the foot_. At the time, she had no idea what on earth the phrase meant, but now that she knew the meaning of the expression, she found that it aptly described what she was doing to herself. And the worst part, she realized, was that she couldn't even think of a good lie to cover up the truth. She was in no mood to admit to her grandmother, much less her father, that she had kissed the Avatar to get out of a "cursed hole" as Sokka had called it.

"We had to solve…a riddle," Katara said, hastily. It wasn't a complete lie; in a way, they _had_ had to solve a riddle.

Katara could only describe the look her grandmother gave her as one of skepticism and suspicion.

"And what riddle would be hidden in a lovers' cave?" Kanna asked.

Katara flushed, an action which didn't go unnoticed by the old woman. "I forget," she lied. "In any case, we made it out of the cave."

The rest of the story was easier to relate. Katara didn't have to worry about anything until she came to the part about what had happened in the catacombs at Ba Sing Se. Hakoda had never heard the full story from either her or Sokka until now and Katara was careful not to elaborate on anything that might have suggested how hurt and afraid she had been. Even though she knew that her father had guessed how she felt, she knew her grandmother didn't and she preferred to keep it that way.

Their adventures in the Fire Nation were the easiest to relate because nothing like their failure at Ba Sing Se had happened. She told them all about the dance party they threw for school children, how Sokka had learned from Piandao, about Hama (though she left out the part about bloodbending). She described the invasion (for Kanna's sake), how Zuko had joined their group, and how they had all helped stop Ozai before he used Sozin's Comet to destroy the Earth Kingdom.

"Sounds like you had quite the time," Kanna said when Katara finished. Her granddaughter simply nodded. "But I'm curious. You mentioned something about a fortuneteller."

"Aunt Wu," Katara said, absently.

"What did she tell you?"

"Anything good?" Hakoda wondered.

Katara shrugged. "Oh, the usual. How long I'll live and things like that."

"Nothing on love?" Hakoda teased and Katara blushed.

"No."

Hakoda chuckled, knowing Katara was keeping something from him. "You're still a horrible liar, Katara and I know you well enough to know that you're hiding something."

"Well, Aunt Wu did mention one thing."

Hakoda raised an eyebrow.

Katara grinned. "I think it was something about nosy fathers trying to get secrets out of their daughters."

Hakoda just laughed. He didn't bother telling Katara he had a pretty good idea what her secret was.

"I'm guessing Katara told you all about our trip," Sokka said, later as he and Hakoda were outside.

He nodded, watching Katara and Aang in the distance. "Sounds like you had quite the experience."

Sokka nodded. "We did. I can't imagine what life would be life if Katara and I hadn't met Aang or if we hadn't left."

His father just smiled. Again, that feeling that something about Katara was different came back, but he still had no idea what it was, so he tried to forget about it by distracting himself with other things.

"She really loves him, doesn't she?" Hakoda asked, watching Katara and Aang.

Sokka just grinned and nodded. He knew his sister hadn't said a word about her feelings to her father, but Hakoda knew her well enough to know the truth.

"It's good to see her happy again," the chief said.

Sokka chuckled. "I don't think she'll be unhappy for a long time," he said. "At least not with Aang around."

"What about you?"

Sokka's grin grew wider. "I've got Suki and that's all I need."

Later that night, as they all sat around the dinner table, Hakoda mused on how much his children had grown up. It was hard to imagine that the two young people who sat across from him were the same two little children who had scampered about the house when they were little. He was immensely proud that Sokka and Katara had helped save the world and happy that they had found someone who meant as much to them as Kya meant to him.

It was only then that Hakoda was able to recognize what was different about Katara. She no longer wore Kya's necklace. Instead, she wore a simpler one that looked to be made of fishing line while Kya's was wrapped securely around her wrist. Hakoda smiled to himself. He had a pretty good idea who had given her the necklace but exchanging necklaces was a Water Tribe custom. So if an airbender gave a waterbender a necklace, what did it mean? Fortunately for him, love was a universal language and Hakoda only had to look at them to know the answer.


	17. Daydreaming

_Disclaimer: I don't own ATLA._

* * *

**XVII. Daydreaming**

_You're my daydream _

_You know that I've been thinking about you lately_

~Avril Lavigne, Daydream

King Kuei leaned back in his chair and idly wondered what it was like to have a girlfriend. He knew he should have been paying attention to the latest ideas the council was proposing, but it was hard to do that when they had been at it for hours, and when three of their most important guests were present in spirit but absent in thought. Kuei smiled to himself and thought about the pleasures of having a companion. He loved Bosco to bits, but Bosco was still a bear, after all. He couldn't talk or do certain things like Kuei could.

The Earth King broke out of his reverie and made a futile attempt to pay attention to the conversation, but it was increasing difficult to focus on anything. The conversation had needlessly been dragging for hours and he had long ago lost interest. Helping people was all well and good, he thought, but listening to the council talk like this is pointless. So Kuei contented himself with other matters.

His attention, therefore, turned to the three young men sitting opposite him. They were looking at the council as if they were taking in every word the generals said, but Kuei knew they weren't really listening. His gaze fell on the young Firelord and Kuei's smile widened. Zuko looked like he was paying attention, but his amber eyes had a faraway look. Kuei knew he was most likely thinking about Mai. He hadn't met her, but from what he heard, she sounded like a bright girl and a skilled warrior. One of his generals had mentioned something about her abilities and Kuei struggled to remember what it was. It wasn't until he saw the sunlight glinting off the swords of one of his generals, that he remembered. He had been told she was an expert knife thrower; according to one of his advisors, her daggers rarely missed their mark.

It must be a useful skill, the Earth King thought as a general droned on. What I would give to learn something like that.

Sighing to himself, Kuei let his gaze rest on the lanky Water Tribe warrior sitting directly across from him. Judging by the expression on Sokka's face, it was safe to say that he was bored out of his mind and that his thoughts were more focused on Suki than on what was being discussed. Kuei had never met the Kyoshi warrior, but he had always wanted to, especially after he found out that Azula had impersonated her. One of his advisors had told him about all the things the Kyoshi warriors had done to help fight against the Firelord Ozai and he had yet to thank them properly for their services.

One day, he thought, looking at the officials over the rim of his glasses. One day, I'll thank all the Kyoshi warriors properly. And Aang.

He let his gaze linger on Aang for a few seconds. He had tried over and over to express his gratitude to the airbender (to all three of them, in fact) but had never properly rewarded him or the others. But it was easy to see the airbender was content. Kuei smiled knowingly. He knew it had something to do with Katara, the beautiful waterbender who he hadn't seen in a long time. He didn't have to know everything about Aang and Katara to know that they were closer than most people he had seen before. He only had to walk a few feet outside the palace city and he could hear people talking about them. Most of it was complimentary, merchants commenting on their compatibility, women commenting on how good they looked together, etc., but occasionally, he passed a few girls who were rather jealous of the waterbender.

Kuei wondered what it was like to feel such jealousy towards someone. He hadn't really interacted much with others to be well acquainted with the feeling, but he knew that if another man pursued the love of his life (if and when he found her) he'd probably be jealous.

Suddenly, Kuei wanted the meeting to end. He wanted to go out, meet new people, make new friends, perhaps even meet some beautiful girl. He knew that falling in love didn't always happen that quickly, but after spending all this time alone, he was more than willing to begin searching for that special someone.

* * *

For once in his life, Zuko was eager to leave the Earth Kingdom. Even if it didn't seem like it, he actually enjoyed the place, but now he was itching to leave. Normally, he didn't mind these meetings because they accomplished something but this meeting was entirely different. The generals had droned on and on, so much so that even the Earth King began daydreaming. Zuko sighed to himself and glanced out the window, letting his thoughts stray back to Mai. He wondered what she was doing. Was she as bored as he was? Or had she found something good to do to occupy her time?

"I'm glad we're finally leaving," Zuko said, later as he, Sokka, and Aang walked away from the palace. "I don't think I could have taken it a minute longer."

Sokka nodded in agreement. "It was so boring, I'm sure even Appa would have fallen asleep. Did anyone actually pay attention?"

"I didn't," Aang admitted. "I was trying, but it was…"

"Hard?" Zuko supplied and the airbender nodded. "Tell me about it. You'd think that after all this time, the councils would learn. But every meeting gets harder and harder to sit through."

"In any case, we're going back," Sokka pointed out. "I can't wait to see Suki. It feels like I haven't seen her in ages."

By the time Aang, Sokka, and Zuko returned, it was evening. The sun was setting, staining the sky with hues of pink and purple and the faint outline of a crescent moon hung in the sky. Zuko was off Appa even before he landed and was striding over to Mai who had an amused look on her face.

"He's glad to be back," Sokka noted.

"And you aren't?" Aang teased as Suki came to greet Sokka.

Sokka just grinned and walked over to talk to Suki.

Aang was wondering where Katara was when he heard something drop in the distance. All he heard next was someone call his name and all he saw was a streak of blue before Katara collided with him, knocking him to the ground and enveloping him in what looked like a bone crushing hug,

"You're back!" she exclaimed, smiling.

He grinned and returned the hug. "If I was going to get a greeting like this every time I went away, I'd have left and come back more often," he teased.

"You're hilarious," she said as he helped her up. "How was the meeting?"

"Boring. I spent the entire time…"

"Daydreaming?" She teased.

He nodded.

"Anything good?" she wondered.

Aang grinned. "The best."

"Was it about living underwater again?"

"Something far more interesting," he answered, playing along.

By now, Katara was genuinely interested in what he meant.

"Oh, really? What could possibly be so interesting that the great Avatar spent hours daydreaming about?"

"You."

"I'm touched," she said, feigning humbleness.

Aang smiled wider. "But you know what's better than daydreaming about you?"

"What?"

"Actually being with you."

"I agree," she whispered as he kissed her.

* * *

_Thanks for all the wonderful reviews!_

_~Cassie_


	18. Dangerous

_Hooray for updates! Just a random, funny idea I had. Enjoy! Oh, and kudos to anyone who can catch the ATLA allusion in this : )_

_Disclaimer: I don't own ATLA._

* * *

**XVIII. Dangerous**

_You stop me in my tracks  
My heart pumping to the max  
I'm such a sucker for your eyes  
They permanently paralyze_

~Shania Twain, Whatever You Do! Don't!

The light of the sun glinted off the blade of Sokka's sword as he artfully flourished it. His feet shuffled in unknown forms and his hands moved lightning fast, as Katara watched him practice. She felt slightly guilty because this was the first time she had bothered to watch him train and it had been a while since he had become a sword master. It was, she realized, fascinating to watch him. She had been him in action before, but things usually happened so quickly, that she only had a quick glimpse. But now that Sokka was practicing at a leisurely pace, Katara was able to observe the intricate footwork and moves that went into it.

"So," her brother asked, sitting down beside her. "What do you think?"

Katara smiled. "Amateur."

"What?" Sokka cried. "How was that…?"

"Relax," she said, smirking. "I was just teasing."

"Good," Sokka said. "Because I'll have you know this isn't as easy as it looks."

Katara just handed him his water and waited for him to finish. Sokka took his own sweet time, enjoying the drink and relaxing, but his sister was suddenly on her feet, an excited expression on her face.

"What?" Sokka asked warily, setting his empty glass beside him.

"Teach me," Katara said simply.

"Teach you what?" he asked blankly.

The waterbender rolled her eyes. "How to use a sword, Sokka."

"_What?" _He repeated, gaping at her.

"You heard me. I want to learn how to use a sword."

"But, Katara, you're a master waterbender. Why on earth would you want to learn how to use a sword?"

She shrugged. "I just want to."

Sokka sighed. He knew Katara had a natural curiosity and was always open to learning new things; he always thought she'd learn airbending if she could. But he just didn't know if allowing his little sister to learn how to use a sword was the best idea.

"We don't even have practice swords," Sokka pointed out.

Katara smiled. "Then you'll just have to teach me with a real one."

"And what if I accidently hurt you?" he demanded, hoping that would deter her, but as usual, she had a solution.

"I've got plenty of water to bend," she said, gesturing to the fountain nearby. "I can just heal us. As long as you don't chop off my hands, we'll be fine."

Sokka didn't smile. "But what if I do chop off your hands?"

"You won't," Katara said. "I know you won't and I trust you not to."

"Thanks," Sokka said, though he still didn't want to teach her. But Katara made no move to go and he could see she wouldn't let up until he taught her something, so he disappeared and returned a few minutes later, bringing another sword with him.

"Here," he said, handing it to Katara. "You sure you want to do this?" She nodded. "I'm not the best person to learn from."

"Sokka, Master Piandao wouldn't have taught you if he didn't think you were capable of learning how to become a sword master. And honestly, even if you hadn't learned how to use a sword properly, I would still have wanted to learn from you."

"Why?"

"Because you're my brother," she replied. "And even if you can be a complete goofball sometimes, you're a lot smarter than you give yourself credit for. I wouldn't learn from the best sword masters anyway."

"Why not?" Sokka wondered.

"Because they'd be very strict and extremely boring. At least you'll make the learning fun."

"Very true," he acknowledged, grinning. "But if you think joking around and flattering me will make me go easy on you, you've got another thing coming."

"Oh please, I never joke. I'm always very serious, Sifu Sokka," she said, trying her hardest not to laugh as she bowed to her brother. But when their gazes met, they both burst out laughing.

"Listen closely," Sokka admonished. "The art of the sword is a way of life," he said, trying to sound as serious as he could and trying to remember the countless things Piandao had taught him. "Think of the sword as an extension of yourself."

And so began Katara's training. She and Sokka practiced for hours, working on her footwork and how to use the sword. Sokka wasn't at all surprised by Katara's quick progress (since it hadn't taken her very long to master waterbending), but she put it down to his good teaching. Sokka was an excellent teacher in spite of what he and others believed.

* * *

Aang knew he should have been finishing the last of the paperwork that Zuko and the council needed, but he needed (and wanted) a break, so he left his room and just wandered about the grounds for a while. He hadn't seen the others all morning and was wondering where they were when he heard faint sounds coming from the distance. He followed the noise towards the courtyard, surprised to find Katara training with Sokka. They were doing some basic drills, but it seemed that Katara had mastered the basics of handling a sword. The Avatar was so busy watching the waterbender he almost walked into one of the many pillars that marked giant doors opening into the courtyard.

Aang ducked behind one of the pillars and watched Katara and Sokka train. From where he was, he had a good view of everything, but he doubted that either one of the siblings could see him. He smiled to himself, watching Sokka demonstrating a new move. More often than not, Katara had always watched him train, but now he was the one watching her. There was a simple pleasure in it and he began to understand why Katara had always watched him. He never thought it was terribly exciting to sit and watch someone practice their bending, but it was, in a strange way, relaxing and altogether enjoyable to watch, even if Katara fell a hundred times and lost several practice matches to Sokka.

It was only by watching Katara practice, that Aang realized how dangerous she was. It wasn't her skills as a master waterbender or a novice sword master that made her dangerous (though they certainly made her a formidable opponent). It was just the effect she had on him (and presumably others) that made her dangerous. Aang knew he had a mountain load of things waiting for him in his room, but he didn't want to leave or stop watching Katara train. He knew that there would be several highly displeased officials at the meeting the following morning, but he just couldn't take his eyes off Katara. Even when she was training, she was as graceful and as beautiful as she always was.

After a good two hours of watching Sokka and Katara train, Aang reluctantly made up his mind to return to his room and continue his work. He didn't think Sokka would see him as he left, but the warrior spotted him and called his name.

Aang waved at them and smiled. He stopped momentarily and started watching them again. Katara became aware of his presence, and tried not to think about it too much. But she knew his gaze was still on her, so she looked up. When their gazes met, Katara all but stopped defending herself from Sokka's blows and it was only Sokka's quick reflexes that prevented his blade from hitting her.

"Katara," he squeaked, but his sister wasn't paying attention. Sokka just blinked. "Why'd you just stop like that?"

"I'm sorry," she stammered, a faint blush gracing her cheeks. Sokka groaned to himself. He didn't know Katara and Aang could fight off some of the toughest benders and not feel worried, but instantly became nervous and self-conscious when the other watched them train.

"Hey Aang, you should watch Katara train," He said suddenly, giving his little sister a devilish grin. Katara felt her mouth grow dry.

"Sokka," she hissed in a whisper. "What are you doing?"

"Nothing," Sokka said, innocently. "He looks tired from doing all that paperwork, so I figured maybe he'd like to watch you train. You always watched him train."

"Yeah, but that was different."

"How so?"

"Well…"

"It wasn't different. Besides, what's the big deal? It's just Aang," he whispered back to her before walking towards the airbender and half dragging him along with him.

_What's the big deal_? _It's just Aang._ Katara groaned to herself. Didn't Sokka know what Aang did to her? He must, she thought, because he was grinning again.

Ever since she and Sokka had left the South Pole, she had been in enough dangerous situations, and played enough dangerous games to last a lifetime. She had met her share of pirates, thugs, evil benders, etc, but they weren't half as dangerous as the Avatar. The things he could do to her…

Katara gave an involuntary shudder and suddenly became more alert. She didn't want to embarrass herself in front of Aang, but when she glanced in his direction, she was surprised to find that he looked slightly nervous. What was he nervous about? He was only watching her train.

Sokka came at her for what seemed like the millionth time, but she successfully managed to block most of his blows. For a while, they just trained like that, drilling basic defense sequences over and over again, but Sokka stopped her after some time.

"Could you do me a favor?" he asked, turning to Aang.

"What?" the Avatar asked, eyeing the warrior warily.

"We're moving really fast. I can't watch Katara's footwork properly. Could you watch her for me and tell me how she does?"

Katara felt her heart rate speed up and she thought about running the sword through herself before she died of embarrassment. The last thing she needed was Aang watching her like that.

"Please?" Sokka begged.

Aang just glared at him. He was catching on to Sokka's game quickly and had half a mind to airbend him into a tree, just high enough so he couldn't get down.

"I don't think it's a good idea, Sokka," he said. Katara gave him a grateful smile.

"What's the worst that could happen?" Sokka demanded.

"I could chop off your head," his sister hissed in a whisper. "Are you trying to make me hurt you?"

"It's just Aang," Sokka snapped back in a whisper.

_Just Aang?_ Katara wanted to scream. Aang who made her trip over her own feet? Aang who made her lose her focus? Aang who distracted her to no end, made her unable to do everything and anything? She could have hit Sokka then.

"Well, I'm tiring," Sokka said. "I can't watch your footwork and teach you at the same time. It's hard work. Want to take over for me, Aang?"

Katara saw him stiffen from the corner of her eye.

"Sokka, I know next to nothing about handling a sword. You really want me to teach Katara?"

"Five minutes," was Sokka's reply. Aang shook his head and Sokka began pleading.

"It'll be fine. What's the big deal? It's just Katara," he whispered to the young airbender.

Aang groaned. Katara _was_ the big deal. They no longer had any of the problems they had together before the war, but asking him to do this, was asking for trouble. Katara still had the same effect on him and it certainly wasn't going to help anyone if he just kept staring at her and kept losing his concentration.

"I thought you'd want him to help you," Sokka said to Katara, quietly so Aang couldn't hear them.

"Well…"

Sokka groaned. "You two are impossible. I don't get nervous around my girlfriend when she watches me train."

"Sokka!"

"What?" he asked, shrugging. "I don't, so you shouldn't get nervous around Aang and you shouldn't worry so much about people watching you. Like I said, I'm getting tired and I need help and…"

"SOKKA!"

"What?"

"Shut up."

"That's no way to talk to your teacher, young lady. Extra practice. Start working on your drills."

"You're being ridiculous," Katara said. "You don't need Aang's help."

"I don't need it or you don't want me to have it?" He whispered.

Katara frowned.

"Start working on your drills."

Katara began, muttering something inaudible under her breath. Sokka watched her for a while, before they began dueling again. Aang just watched them, surprised that teaching seemed to suit Sokka. Of course, once Sokka began shouting suggestions to Katara, Aang began to reevaluate his idea.

"Watch your footwork," Sokka instructed. "Make sure you hold the sword properly. Don't bend your knees. Make sure…hey!"

Sokka watched his sword fly from his hands and land with a thud on the grass.

"You…?"

"Won?" Katara supplied, smirking. Aang laughed silently.

"I was going easy on you that time," Sokka cried.

"Of course you were."

"In any case," he said, quickly changing the subject. "I think that's enough training for today. Excellent work, pupil Katara."

"Only because I have an excellent goofball teacher," she said.

Sokka smiled and sheathing his sword, walked away.

"So," Aang asked, as Katara sat down beside him. "What made you want to learn how to use a sword?"

"Oh, I don't know," she admitted. "Mai's got her daggers and Suki knows how to use all sorts of weapons, so I thought I'd give it a try. Is something wrong with that?"

"It's… different."

"And you don't like different?"

"I don't mind different."

"Speaking of different," Katara said. "Why'd you watch me train?"

"Well…" Aang stopped, at a loss for words. "Sokka kind of dragged me over."

"Oh. So you wouldn't have come otherwise?" she asked, looking down.

He shrugged. "Probably not. It's… dangerous, in a sense."

Katara looked up. "Dangerous," she repeated, and she burst out laughing.

"What's so funny?" Aang demanded.

"That's just why I didn't want Sokka to let you watch me train," she laughed.

"I'm not dangerous," Aang said, feigning indignation.

"You are too," she replied. "Half the reason I'm so distracted is because of you. Do you have any idea what you do sometimes?"

He chuckled. "Welcome to my world."

"So you don't mind different?" Katara asked, changing the subject.

He shook his head. "No."

"You don't mind me learning how to use a sword?"

"No. Why would I?" he asked.

She shrugged. "I don't know. It's…different."

He nodded. "It is, but I don't mind. But you know, you really didn't need to learn it."

"I didn't?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because, Katara, you're perfect the way you are."

* * *

_Thanks for all the reviews! Reviews and reviewers are a writer's best friend ^-^_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	19. Insomniatic

_Disclaimer: I don't own ATLA _

* * *

**XIX. Insomniatic**

_I am erratic  
Can't break the habit  
My current status  
With you I'm insomniatic _

~ Aly & AJ, Insomniatic

It was strange, Katara thought one night as she watched the young Avatar disappear from sight, how attuned she had become to Aang. It was almost instinctual. Sometimes, if he went out in the middle of the night, she went after him even before her mind registered what she was doing, even if she was half asleep. Often times, she woke up in the middle of the night feeling like something was missing and sure enough, his bed would be empty. Tonight was one of those nights. She had woken up rather unexpectedly and knowing she wasn't going to fall asleep, she sat in the darkness of her room for a while, watching the stars from her window. It was several minutes before she decided to wander outside to find Aang.

If Aang hadn't been wide awake and so used to the vibrations Katara emitted, he might not have seen (or in this case, _felt_) her leave the house and come stand beside him. She looked cold dressed in her thin nightgown, but her eyes were sparkling and she was smiling.

"You're still up, huh? Shouldn't you be in bed?"

"I could ask you the same thing," he said, grinning.

"You could," she consented. "But I don't have much of an answer."

For a while, the two just remained silent, watching the nightlife around them.

"So why are you up?" Aang asked at last.

"Couldn't sleep." She said it casually, like it was something that happened often and something of no importance, but Aang could tell it was bothering her more than she let on.

"You sound upset."

"I was having a good dream," she admitted.

Aang started to say something, but Katara cut him off.

"You don't still dream about living underwater, do you?"

He cast a puzzled glance at her, wondering what prompted that question. It was only after he noticed her gaze fixed on the lake several hundred feet away that he understood why she asked.

"I never dreamed about living underwater."

"That one time, right before the invasion, you said you…"

He chuckled. "I may have lied."

"You _what_?"

"I may have made something up," he repeated.

"But why? I mean, it was just a dream," Katara pointed out.

Aang just laughed. "It's…complicated."

"So what were you really daydreaming about then?"

"Take a guess," the Avatar said, mysteriously.

"Hey, that's not fair. I could be up all night guessing."

"Well you're not going to sleep, are you?" he teased.

"No," Katara admitted, grinning. "I'm probably not." How could she possibly fall asleep when Aang was there?

A cat-owl hooted in the distance and both benders turned simultaneously towards the source of the noise. The cat-owl hooted again and gazed solemnly at the waterbender and the Avatar before taking off into the night.

"It's strange how many things are up at night," Katara said, watching as the cat-owl became smaller and smaller as it flew off. "It's like some of these animals never rest."

"Maybe some don't," Aang said. "In the Air Temples, I swore there were always some animals running around at night."

"Did you _ever_ sleep?" Katara wondered, smiling at him.

"What?"

Katara smiled wider. "You never seem to sleep. You're either always doing something or just sitting."

"I do too sleep," he retorted, feigning indignation. "You're just always asleep, so you never see."

Katara giggled. "I think that honor goes to my brother. Honestly, I don't know how Suki puts up with him."

"They same way I put up with you." He teased, smirking.

"Aang!"

"I was just kidding."

"I hope for your sake you are," Katara said, trying to sound as severe as she could. After a few seconds, though, they both burst out laughing. From somewhere inside, the sound of snoring grew less pronounced and Katara clamped a hand over her mouth to silence herself.

"You think we woke them up?" Aang whispered, gesturing to the others sleeping in the house.

Katara shrugged. "Maybe Toph, but definitely not the others. I doubt the others can hear us over Sokka's snoring."

The airbender smiled.

"You still haven't answered my question," Katara pointed out. By now, she had left his side and climbed onto the tall stone fence that circled around the estate. She was trying (and not doing a very good job, the airbender noted) to keep her balance as she walked along the narrow stone ledge. "What were you really thinking about if you made up that story about living underwater?"

"I thought you were going to guess."

Katara sighed. "There's no way I'm going to guess and get it right," she said, concentrating on her footwork.

"You might."

"I might," she conceded, almost losing her footing, but regaining her balance at the last minute. "But it would be a lot easier if you told me."

"I was thinking about you," Aang said.

Katara stopped walking for a split second and smiled at him. "And living underwater was the best cover up you could come up with?"

"It worked, didn't it?" he wondered as Katara began walking again.

The waterbender nodded. "Unfortunately, it did. But you know, you could have just told me the truth."

"I don't think so," he laughed. "I couldn't even talk properly around you then."

"Neither could I. Remember Ember Island?"

He nodded, knowing the likelihood of him forgetting the disastrous event was very slim.

The treetops rustled in the wind and Katara pushed her hair out of her eyes. The stone of the fence was cool and smooth underneath her bare feet as she slowly continued walking. She was surprised to find that it was actually harder than she had thought it would be. The ledge seemed wide enough, but she was beginning to realize that the feat wasn't as easy as she had made it out to be originally. She thought about just getting down, but she wasn't the least bit sleepy and there wasn't much to do that wouldn't wake up the others, so she amused herself by walking along the stone ledge. For a while, she was doing fine, but suddenly, Katara was teetering precariously on the ledge and Aang caught her just before she fell.

"Your balance is terrible, you know?" he said.

"I know," she replied, giving him a grateful smile. "But I've heard airbenders know a thing or two about balance. Any chance you could teach me?"

"Possibly," he said, setting her back on her feet.

This time, Katara didn't bother to stifle her laugh.

The rest of the night passed by slowly. Aang and Katara were up long after the moon had begun its descent and by the time the first rays of sunlight spilled over the horizon, they decided to get whatever little sleep they could. Of course when Sokka woke up an hour or so before noon, he was surprised to find that his sister and the Avatar where nowhere in sight.

"Are they still asleep?" Suki wondered as Sokka sat down to eat.

"Those two?" Sokka shook his head. "They're insomniacs; they never sleep. If I know them, they're probably _practicing_ waterbending."

Suki smiled at the thought of the two bending by the lake. Of course, neither Sokka nor Suki knew that on the other side of the stone fence, hidden by the tall, green grasses that waved in the wind, the Avatar and a certain waterbender were curled up next to each other, dreaming about each other in peaceful slumber.

* * *

_Thanks for all the reviews! You guys are such a wonderul inspiration ^_^_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	20. Storm

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything. Everything belongs to Mike and Bryan._

* * *

**XX. Storm**

_Love's an electric storm of pleasure and pain_

_Where thunder and lightning are crashing and striking us down_

~Delta Goodrem, Electric Storm

Water, as Aang had heard countless times, was the element of change. It was gentle and turbulent. It was sympathetic and unforgiving. Unpredictable.

A storm was brewing again. Aang stood on the beach, watching dark, heavy storms clouds moving slowly inland from the sea as waves pounded the windswept beach. High above, in a sky laden with clouds, two birds soared together, riding the wind currents out into the turbulent waters where their fun would begin. Aang watched a small smile growing on his face. The birds, like the sudden storms that rolled in from the sea, were also impulsive. So erratic and unpredictable. Like Katara.

Sometimes, Katara was like a mystery. She was like jewel with dozens of different facets One minute she would be calm and tranquil and the next, the complete opposite. She changed with the unpredictability of her element. But like her element, she was graceful and sinuous. She was beautiful, wild, and free.

Breathtaking. He could have used the word to describe the storm. Blue-black clouds moving swiftly overhead, bright forks of lightning that illuminated the sky, the sea tossing and churning. But the storm wasn't half as beautiful, wasn't nearly as breathtaking as the waterbender that was walking towards him. It always amazed him how she seemed to be becoming prettier as each day passed and he wondered vaguely if such a thing was even possible.

By the time Katara noticed Aang's presence, a slight drizzle was falling. She quickened her pace, her long hair trailing behind her as the water splashed against her. When she stood before him, she was grinning.

"It's raining." She said, simply.

Aang nodded. "Looks like a bad storm."

"I've seen worse," Katara said, her gazed fixed on the horizon where the waves grew in size. The winds suddenly picked up and her smile widened. She was aware that Aang was watching her warily, as if he thought she was slightly crazy for enjoying the sudden storm, but she didn't mind.

"We should probably go back inside," Aang muttered as the storm became more intense. Katara was surprised to detect the reluctance in his voice.

"Why?"

"It's starting to rain," he pointed out. "And it's getting really windy."

"You're worried about the wind? But you're an _airbender_."

Aang chuckled. "I like staying out in storms just as much as you do," he teased. "But this one looks pretty bad."

Katara nodded, but Aang barely saw the movement, because at that moment, a sudden gust of wind blew her hair into her face.

Katara hated to admit that the storm was getting worse, but Aang was right. The wind was no longer the gentle breeze that coaxed her to play. It was a strong gale that tugged at her and whipped at her. It was strange, she reflected, how one minute the wind could be so gentle, but so brutal the next. She had always thought that air was the gentlest of the four elements, but as the wind speed increased, she thought that it was perhaps as destructive as all the other elements.

A loud rumble of thunder broke her from her train of thoughts and Katara looked up just in time to see a jagged fork of lightning flash in the sky. The sea roared loudly and Katara saw Aang mouth something to her, but she couldn't make out a word of what he was saying. She knew that they really should have been somewhere dry and safe, away from the dangerous tides, but there was something captivating about the storm, something that made her want to stay. It was enchanting.

"Katara, we really should get back inside before we get soaked," Aang said.

She nodded but made no move to go until Aang took her hand and half dragged her along.

"I wanted to stay," she said, reluctantly following the airbender.

"No, you don't," was his reply.

"And why don't I?"

"Because this is like the storm I was caught in when I ran away and believe me, it wasn't any fun."

Katara grudgingly admitted he had a point.

The rain was falling in torrents long before they reached the house. It wasn't a long walk, but the walking through the waves that pounded the shore wasn't easy. They both stumbled and because their hands were still interlaced, they often brought the other down. By the time they had gotten used to the change in the water, they faced a new problem.

As if the rain falling in sheets wasn't enough, the waves suddenly picked up, gaining in altitude before slamming themselves onto the windswept beach. Any hopes the two had of staying mostly dry were instantly crushed when the waters suddenly sprang to life and a rather large wave barreled towards the shore.

Neither one of them knew who reacted first, whether it was Aang that latched on to Katara, or Katara who latched on to Aang, but they held tight to each other, even as the waves continually battered them and tried to pull them apart and as the sand shifted beneath their feet. Wave after wave struck against the shore, pulling at them, trying to knock them off their feet but the harder the storm tried, the tighter they held on to one another.

"We need to get inside," Aang said, over the sound of the storm.

"How?" Katara demanded, as the cold waters surged around them. "I can barely see."

"We could…" He began, but his sentence was cut short by another wave crashing into them and knocking them off balance and sweeping them into the turbulent waters. Neither one of them knew how long they were tossed around in the waters, but when the sea finally spit them out, back onto the beach, they were still clinging to each other as if nothing in the world could separate them.

The storm raged on for a few minutes longer, and then like a snowflake hitting a warm substance, it dissolved into nothing. The clouds were ushered away by the wind and the waters fell back until they were nothing more than smalls waves that scurried towards the shore and hastily retreated.

"They're so unpredictable, aren't they?" Katara asked, referring to their elements as she wrung the water out of her hair and dress.

"Maybe," Aang replied. "But they work pretty well together."

"I know. That's why I love watching storms."

"They can be pretty dangerous."

"Nothing would have happened to us anyway," Katara said, following Aang as they continued walking again.

"You don't think so?"

Katara shook her head.

"Why not?"

"Because we work pretty well together," she said, smiling at him.


	21. Ephemeral Yet Everlasting

_Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar._

* * *

**XXI. Ephemeral Yet Everlasting**

_Fear not the flame of my love's candle  
Give unto me your troubles  
Fear not the flame of my love's candle  
I'll endure your suffering  
Let it be the sun in your world of darkness  
Place onto me your burden  
Give unto me all that frightens you  
I'll drink your deadly poison  
I'll have your nightmares for you if you sleep soundly_

~ Evanescence, Give Unto Me

Dawn had painted the canvas of sky with shades of morning, but for a certain group of people, the beauty meant nothing. Sokka stood in the house that suddenly looked forlorn and listened closely to the healer. Rays of sunlight were streaming into the room through the window, but despite all the warmth, Sokka just felt numb.

"There's not much time. I'd say a few days."

"How many days exactly?"

"Three to five at best."

Sokka buried his face in his hands. "You're absolutely sure?"

The healer nodded. "It's a little too late. I'm really very sorry, but there's nothing anyone can do." he said, giving Sokka an apologetic look and exiting the house.

He found Suki, Toph, and Aang waiting for him in another room. Suki was sitting huddled in a chair, her dull blue green eyes focused on the patch of sunlight on the floor. There were circles under her eyes and she looked tired. She didn't smile or greet him when he entered, just asked him what the healer had said. And when he replied, her eyes became glazed with tears.

"Sokka," she began in a choked voice. "Does… does your father know?"

Sokka gave a bitter laugh. "He'll know when it's too late. I sent a letter to him at the South Pole, but I don't know when he'll get it."

"And Katara?"

"She doesn't know."

"She doesn't know _yet_," Toph corrected. "She has a right to know. We should tell her."

They found her sitting on her bed, brushing her long, brown hair like she had every morning for the past two weeks. She looked slightly thinner and her cerulean eyes had lost their sparkle, but her smile more than made up for that.

"Hi," she said, cheerfully and the sound of laughter in her voice nearly made Sokka burst into tears. He didn't know why she was so happy.

"We've…um… got some news for you," Sokka said, hastily.

"What news?" She wondered, plaiting her hair. "And why are you all so depressed?"

"Well…" He began, fiddling with his collar. He cleared his throat and began again. "It's…"

Katara sighed, finished braiding her hair and turned to face the others. "What's wrong?"

"I talked to the healer and…"

Katara rolled her eyes, a gesture which didn't go unnoticed by her older brother.

"Katara, this is serious," he cried, noticing how coolly the waterbender was acting.

"Sokka…" she began, but Suki stopped her.

"You should hear what he has to say, Katara," the Kyoshi Warrior said. "It's important."

"Fine," Katara muttered. "What is it?"

"The healer says you have five days to… to live."

"Oh," she said, her eyes widening a little as she finally understood why the others looked so dejected. "Sokka…"

"Five days," the warrior repeated, glancing out the window where the sun was just slipping over the horizon. "That's not enough time to…"

"Sokka, don't you dare feel sorry for me," Katara interrupted, staring at her brother.

"But you're dying," Sokka said, sadly. "That's not enough time to get help."

"Yeah, well, that's life. Do you think Mai, or General Iroh, or any of the others deserved it? Do you know how many people already died?"

"Mai and Iroh aren't dead though," Suki pointed out, reminding them that the two were one of the few that had escaped paralysis and death.

"I know," she consented. "But these things happen. It's not anyone's fault."

"I'm still waiting to know exactly how this happened," Toph muttered.

Sokka shrugged. "Do I look like a healer to you? All I know is that the healers are calling it an epidemic and there's not much they know about it."

"But where did it come from?"

Sokka shrugged again. "They don't know. But it's done a lot of damage already. There are already so many people dying, and the ones that survive are pretty bad off. Most of them are paralyzed, according to the healers, and a few of them can't bend at all."

"Then it's a good thing Mai and Iroh recovered then," Suki said. "But if this is affecting the entire world, what are they going to do?"

"I don't know," Sokka consented. "But there's some good that comes out of this. Apparently a bunch of anarchists are sick and according to what I heard, most if not all of them, can't bend. I know it's an unpleasant thing, but they kind of deserved it after they tried burning down the Earth King's palace last month."

"No one deserves it," Katara said, quietly.

Sokka nodded vigorously. "That's why I'm going to find a healer who can actually help."

"Sokka, you can't…"

But Sokka had already gone out the door, leaving a flustered Suki and slightly annoyed Toph to chase after him. Katara watched them from her window, completely oblivious to Aang's presence, until he called her name.

"Katara…"

"Don't apologize, Aang," she said. "It's not going to fix anything. I'm not going to get any better that way."

"I know," he consented, wishing it wasn't true. "I was going to ask if you wanted to do anything."

"What?"

"Don't you want to do something before…?"

Katara shook her head. "I've done everything I've wanted to do."

"Well, then, don't you want anything?"

She thought for a moment before answering. "No."

"But…"

"I'll get better," she said, brightly and smiling a little as she did so.

Time passed in a blur after that. Katara and Aang spent every waking minute together and oddly enough, Katara couldn't remember a happier time. Even if there wasn't much to do (much she was capable of doing and that Sokka or Aang would let her do) they managed to have fun together. Nighttime was the only time neither of them looked forward to because for Katara, whatever little fun she was having stopped and the others were always awake. They never told Katara that they hardly slept at night, that Sokka (who hadn't really found any help) spent all night outside her door, that they were all worried, or that even Toph had taken to pacing in circles to distract herself. Katara, for her part, never found out, and steadfastly clung to the theory that she would get better. It wasn't until Aang found her in her room the following morning that she began to doubt that she would ever get better.

"What's wrong?"

"I can't waterbend anymore," she said dully.

"Are you sure?" he asked quietly. She nodded and a few tears fell from her eyes.

"I'm nothing without my waterbending," she said, hollowly.

He didn't know how to tell her that she was everything to him even without her bending. There didn't seem to be any words to express the idea that he didn't love her just because she was a waterbender or that if she went, the world wasn't just losing another waterbender, but a sister, a friend, a soul mate. He couldn't explain this to her, so he just closed whatever little distance remained between them and kissed her.

Time is said to be constant, that feelings and moods dictate the perception of time. For all of them, it was so fast yet so slow. Each agonizing minute brought them one step closer to pain and separation. None of them wanted any of it, but they understood enough to know that certain things in life seldom worked the way people intended it to. Aang knew he'd gladly switch places with Katara to take her burden. It wasn't something that required any thought; he would have done it in the blink of an eye if it made any difference. He would have died a thousand deaths even if only to save her once.

The stars that night seemed brighter than ever that night, as they lay among the tall, green grasses that waved in the spring wind. Sokka, Suki, and Toph had resumed their search for a healer and Aang knew he should have been helping them, but he couldn't bring himself to leave Katara. There was almost something mocking about the life around them. The air was heavy with the scent of blossoming flowers and every now and then, the musical melody of the crickets was punctuated by the sound of baby animals crying for their mothers. It didn't seem fair that life was growing all around them, while Katara was slowly dying.

"I wouldn't mind dying right now," she said in a tone that nearly broke his heart.

"Don't say that."

"Why not? I've got and done everything I wanted."

Aang frowned. "We didn't do anything, Katara. Five days isn't enough. A lifetime isn't enough."

Katara shrugged. "It doesn't matter. If someone gave me the choice between meeting you and dying or living a normal life and never meeting you, I'd choose the first one every time," she said, glancing at him.

"You're not going to die."

He knew even as he said those words that they weren't true, but he didn't want to admit to himself that she really was dying.

Katara just giggled. "So, what are we going to do?"

"I don't know," Aang admitted. "But we've got forever to figure out."

Katara fell into a thoughtful silence and it was a long time before she spoke.

"Do you really think we'll all spend forever like this and grow old together?"

Aang nodded. "I do."

She smiled and laced her fingers with his. "Forever really isn't long enough," she whispered, curling up beside him and drifting off to sleep, a smile on her lips.

She never woke up after that.

* * *

Aang awoke to the sound of muffled footsteps padding across the wood floor. He heard the front door open and shut before poking his head out of his room to see who it was. Katara's room was empty as usual and sighing, Aang made his way outside. You know you've got it bad when you have nightmare about the people you love, he thought, shuffling out the door. Was that a quote someone had once said or was it something he had just come up with?

The air outside was heavy with the scent of jasmine and cherry blossoms. It didn't take long for Aang to find Katara sitting amid the tall grasses, gazing at the stars and he wordlessly made his way over to her and sat down beside her.

"Shouldn't you be asleep?" he wondered.

"Bad dream," she replied. "I couldn't sleep. What about you?"

"Bad dream," he answered, trying not to hint just how bad of a dream it had been.

"What about?"

That question caught him off guard. He didn't know what to say. _Oh, I just had a bad dream that you got sick and died because there was nothing I, or anyone else, could do. _

"Um…"

"Do you love me?" Katara asked, suddenly.

"Wh-what?" he stammered, thoroughly confused.

"Do you love me?" She repeated.

"Of course I do. Why would you even ask a silly question like that?"

She shrugged. "Maybe I'm just paranoid, but in my dream, you said that you didn't for a number of reasons and they were all true."

"Well it's not true," he said. "I dreamed about you and nothing in my dreams came true."

"Why don't you want any of them to come true? How bad could it be?"

"Pretty bad."

"Oh."

"There was one good thing that might have come out of it though," Aang said.

"And what's that?" she wondered.

"Getting to spend forever with you."

"You really think we'll grow old together?"

"Sure, why not? We can watch out grandkids run around while we sit in chairs and grumble about our joints or something."

Katara laughed. "I don't know, Aang. I don't think I'd make a very good mother.

Aang just rolled his eyes. "I think you will."

"Well, we'll just have to see."

By the time the two returned to the house and fell asleep, their nightmares subsided and were replaced with much pleasanter dreams, of starting a family together and watching their children run around and play together in childhood bliss.


	22. Taking Over

_Disclaimer: I don't own ATLA._

* * *

**XX. Taking Over**

_I look in the mirror and see your face_

_If I look deep enough_

_So many things inside that are_

_Just like you are taking over_

~ Evanescence, Taking Over Me

She wasn't counting the days. At least that's what Katara told herself, but she knew it was a lie. Sixteen days, fourteen hours, and seven minutes. _That_ was how long they had been on that godforsaken island. And she hated every minute she spent on its beautiful shores. She hated it so much, that even after all this time she hadn't bothered to learn the island's name. She didn't even know why she was there. Something about a conference. Or was that just an excuse someone had made up to get away and go on a vacation?

It was hell, not vacation, she thought gazing at the market in the distance, milling with people. She just couldn't stand this place and the memories it brought back. It was getting harder and harder to get through each agonizing second; she didn't think she'd last the rest of the week.

It really was a beautiful island, one of the few places relatively untouched by the war. But for all its beauty, she couldn't admire or enjoy it. She didn't enjoy the white sand beaches, the rolling hills, the quaint little villages that peppered the island. She didn't enjoy the beautiful house they were staying in. She couldn't even enjoy doing fun things like exploring the island with Sokka and Suki, watching Toph beat local earthbenders at earthbending tournaments, or waterbending with Aang. Especially not waterbending; it brought back unpleasant memories of what had almost happened the last time she had set foot on the island.

"You should really go out," Toph said, suddenly breaking Katara from her train of thoughts. "Being indoors all the time can't be good for you."

"I don't want to go out," Katara replied, slightly irritated. "I hate this place."

"I know," Toph acknowledged. "You mentioned that a thousand times already and I still don't understand why."

"Toph, you know why. The last time I was here, I almost killed someone."

"You're talking about that Southern Raider, aren't you?"

Katara nodded. "He lives around here, somewhere."

"Katara, the chances of you running into him are really slim."

"How do you know? He could be…"

"Even if you do run into him," Toph said, interrupting her. "What are the chances he'll do something? You told me when you came here with Zuko, he was begging for mercy."

"He was," Katara admitted.

"Exactly," the blind earthbender huffed. "So what makes you think he'll do anything to you?"

"I'm not afraid of him doing anything to me," Katara said, quietly gazing out the window. "I'm afraid that even after all this time, I won't be able to let go, and that _I _might do something to him."

Toph had a sarcastic remark on the tip of her tongue, but knowing that it wasn't what her friend needed, she settled for something different.

"Look, we both know you won't do anything. Not because you can't," she said. "But because you're a good person and you wouldn't do anything like he did."

And for the first time since Toph had noticed her sudden change in mood, Katara smiled.

* * *

He was dreaming again. It was the only explanation for this twisted dream, the only way any of this would make sense.

She stood before him, beautiful, impassive, and cold. Her blue eyes were fixed on him, on his every move and he began to shake. What was she doing? Should he talk to her? What would she say after all this time? He opened his mouth, felt a drop of perspiration fall, and closed it shut. There was nothing he could say to make up for what he had done. Nothing at all. And she seemed to know that.

"You let her die," she said. Her voice was so soft yet so loud and he let out a pitiful whimper. This was not the ending he wanted.

She laughed a cold bitter laugh. "Oh wait, that's not the way it was. _You murdered her_."

Though she said it in the same tone, he flinched as if she had shouted it for the entire world to hear.

"I…" he began, shaking violently. But what could he say? He had meant to kill her. That was what he had done, what he had set out to do and accomplished.

She smiled a beautiful smile. "You're sorry." It wasn't a question, "Of course you are." Her smile vanished. "And I don't care."

"Pl-please," he begged, falling on his knees and daring to look into her icy blue eyes that spewed nothing but hatred. "Spare me."

Her lips turned up in an eerie smile and he released another whimper. "Should I spare you like you spared her?" she whispered in a voice that made his blood run cold.

"Do whatever you want," he said, reverting his gaze to the ground. "Leave me on an abandoned island, burn down my house, or torture me if it pleases you."

"Oh, I intend to," she said simply. "And it will please me. Immensely."

He shuddered. This was most definitely not the ending he wanted, but what else could he do? She would never let him go.

"You could take me prisoner," he suggested in a whisper.

"What did you say?" she snapped.

He looked up to meet her gaze and gulped. "You could take me prisoner," he repeated, trembling a little as she shed a beautiful smile upon him.

"_I'm afraid I'm not taking any prisoners today_."

It was out before he even had a second to blink. One long, thin stream of water that hovered in the air and for one moment, she looked lost, as if this wasn't what she wanted to do. But she made up her mind and thrust the water at him with everything she had. It cut his skin and burnt his flesh, leaving him writhing in pain. He screamed for mercy, begged for her to stop, but the blows rained down faster and harder until he felt like there was nothing left of him. When he dared to open his eyes, he was surprised to find himself very much alive. But her voice was echoing in his ears.

_You murdered her._

He hung his head and rubbed his hands together for warmth, noting the sudden cold. When he looked up again, it wasn't the waterbender that stood before him, but the ghost of her mother.

So alike, he noted, trembling anew. Spirits, make this quick. If this is to be my end, let me pass quickly, he prayed.

The spirit hovered in front of him, her eyes fixed on his rigid form. She seemed to take some pleasure in his uneasiness and spent several moments like that, just watching him squirm, before uttering one word.

_Monster._

And just like that, she turned away.

Suddenly, everything was plunged into darkness and he felt himself falling. He opened his mouth to scream but the only sound was that of whispering voices.

"_Mom, I'm scared._"

"_You heard your mother. Get out of here_."

"_Just let her go_."

"_You're lying. My source tells me there's one waterbender left in the Southern Water Tribe. We're not leaving until we find the waterbender_."

"_If I tell you, do you promise to leave the rest of the village alone?_"

"_Who is it? Who's the waterbender_?"

"_It's me. Take me as your prisoner_."

"_She lied to you. She was protecting the last waterbender_."

"_I always wondered what kind of person could do such a thing. But now that I see you, I think I understand. There's just nothing inside you, nothing at all._"

One by one, the voices blended together until they were no longer distinguishable. He felt himself suffocating in a sudden wave of heat and wondered if this was the torture the waterbender had been talking about. He hoped it would end soon. And so, he closed his eyes and let himself be borne away by the inky blackness that marked his dream as a hellish nightmare.

Yon Rha awoke from his afternoon nap, pale and sweating, and shivering uncontrollably despite the warmth of the day. He took several deep breaths and felt his heart rate even out. Grunting with effort, he hoisted himself out of bed, made his way to the bathroom, and gazed at his reflection. Honestly, he was slightly surprised to find that his face hadn't been rearranged or mutilated; his dream had felt so real.

His mother was complaining again, so he took the basket and hurried out of the front door to find some food for their dinner. The sun was high in the sky, shedding its golden light on everything, but for all that, Yon Rha couldn't feel warm. Nothing could calm him after that dream.

The market was bustling with people and Yon Rha found it hard to get the food he needed. But at last, his basket was packed with food and he was on his way home. He threaded his way through the people, being careful not to knock someone over. Ironically, it was in the deserted part of the market that he accidently knocked into someone.

"I'm sorry," he began but stopped when the young woman turned around. Blue eyes wide with surprise met amber ones wide with shock and brimming with fear and Yon Rha fell to his feet before the young waterbender.

"P-please," he begged. "Spare me."

Katara just stared at him. Oh, how she wished Toph was there so she could prove her wrong.

"Take my mother," Yon Rha said, babbling somewhat incoherently. "Take her if it'll make you happy, but please don't kill me."

"I could kill you," Katara said and he cowered in fear. It would be so easy, really. She wouldn't even need to use bloodbending. Easiest thing in the world to use a little waterbending and put the wretched man out of his misery by ending his existence. And, she realized feeling slightly scared, a part of her actually wanted to kill him still. A part of her wanted so badly to watch him suffer as he had made her suffer and then kill him like he had killed her mother. But she couldn't. Not when all the memories came back to her. Sokka's hurt look when she said he didn't love their mother the way she had, Zuko's strange expression when she bloodbended the innocent man, Aang's words trying to dissuade her from killing him.

"_Revenge is like a two-headed rat viper. While you watch your enemy go down, you're being poisoned yourself_."

"_Let out your anger and then let it go._"

"_Katara, you do have a choice…_"

"Y-you're not going to kill me?" Yon Rha wondered as Katara turned away.

"No," she snapped, shaking her head. "I'm not going to lower myself to your level."

"But why don't you take my mother?" He suggested, casting a quick glance at her. "That would make us even."

"I don't want your mother. What good would it do me?" She demanded. "It wouldn't make me any better than you." And Sokka and Aang would never forgive me, she added silently.

"But…"

"And I have no intention of becoming like you." Katara said, giving him one last glance and walking away.

Aang was feeding Appa the last of the hay when Sokka and Suki cornered him.

"We need your help," Suki said. "Katara's…"

"Gone crazy," Sokka said. "She won't talk to anyone and any time we try to get her to tell us what's wrong, she threatens to waterbend us away. She almost froze Toph."

"If she won't talk to you, what makes you think she'll talk to me?" Aang asked.

"You're different," Sokka said and Suki nodded emphatically.

"She'll tell you." Suki insisted.

Aang sighed. "Fine. But if she turns me away, don't say I didn't warn you."

He found her sitting by the lake. She didn't turn around when he called her name, so he ventured closer and she still made no move to waterbend him away. It sounded like she was crying, but he couldn't really tell since her face was buried in her hands.

"Katara? Are you…?" He started to ask, but she surprised him by hugging him.

"I hate you," she whispered, burying her face in his shoulder.

"What?" was all the confused airbender could manage.

"I saw him again today."

"Who?"

"Yon Rha," She said his name in a choked whisper, like it was some forbidden word. "And I wanted to hurt him. But I didn't. Because of you."

"Me?" Aang repeated.

Katara nodded.

"You're sure it was because of me you didn't?" he asked and Katara nodded again. It was what he had said to her before that had prevented her from hurting Yon Rha. Truthfully, she didn't think she was capable of truly killing someone no matter how much she talked about it, but she had certainly wanted (and a part of her wanted still) to hurt him, to make him suffer as she had. A part of her wanted so bad to watch a part of him be destroyed, the way he had destroyed her. But the idea of Aang being mad at her or even hating her, hurt more than the idea of never making Yon Rha pay for what he had done to her.

"I remembered what you said the last time," she said. "And…"

"I wouldn't have been mad," he interrupted, suddenly understanding.

Katara pulled away from him and stared at him in shock. "You wouldn't?"

Aang shook his head. "You wouldn't do something like that in the first place, and even if you did…"

"You wouldn't be mad?" Katara repeated.

He shrugged. "Maybe a little upset, but I wouldn't hate you for it."

"I never said…"

Aang gave a small smile. "You didn't have to." He knew her too well. "But really, we'll never know because you'll never do anything."

Katara shook her head. "Don't count on it. Sometimes, I think I'm going insane because I _want _to hurt him. Sometimes, I feel like if our paths cross I really could."

"But you met him today and you didn't."

"Yeah, but…"

"You know that no matter what you say, you're not going to do anything, so might as well drop the argument. You know I'm going to win."

Katara sighed, but she was smiling. "Oh, all right." How Aang could make her feel better so quickly never failed to amaze her. Several minutes ago, she had been so dejected and somewhat irritated, but now she was practically laughing. She had no idea what he did, but his mere presence was enough to distract her from her problems. And even when he wasn't there, she was always thinking of him or hearing echoes of what he had once said. It was like her every thought and every action revolved around him, like he was slowly taking over her mind and poisoning her. But if taking over meant falling prey to his love, Katara had no qualms with that whatsoever.

* * *

_Thank you so much for the wonderful reviews!_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	23. What's In a Name?

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything._

* * *

**XXIII. What's In a Name?**

_Words have meaning, names have power._

~ Unknown

Aang loved the sound of Katara's name. If anyone had ever asked him what he considered was a beautiful name, he would have replied with hers. Perhaps he was a little biased; he didn't know that many girls to be able to say that Katara's name was the most beautiful, but out of all the girls he knew, Katara easily had the most beautiful name. And he had told her as much once.

Katara had just shrugged. She didn't think her name was anything worth giving thought to. It was, after all, just a name.

"I, personally, don't really like my name," she said, one afternoon as they talked about it.

"You don't?" Aang asked, surprised.

She shook her head. "Not really, no."

"Why not?" he wondered.

"Oh, I don't know. Everybody has normal names like Song or Lee and I get stuck with Katara."

"And what's wrong with that?"

Katara shrugged. "Well…nothing, I guess."

"I happen to like your name."

She rolled her eyes. "You would," she replied, laughing.

"What's that supposed to mean? He demanded.

"Nothing," she amended. "It's just you have a tendency not to dislike anything. So I guess it wouldn't really matter if my parents had chosen a different name for me. You'd still say you like it."

"Maybe," Aang said. "But you know you could have been named something stranger and weirder. Or you could have had a name like one of those swamp benders we met."

Katara grimaced. "Yeah, that sounds like a much better option. What girl doesn't want to be named Huu or Tho or whatever other strange names they had?"

"I'm sure they had different names for girls." Aang said.

"I'm sure they did," Katara agreed. "But who's to say those names aren't any stranger? But what brought all of this on anyway?"

Aang shrugged. "Just thinking and overhearing people talk about it."

"They're just names, though," Katara pointed out. "It's not like they really matter."

Aang raised an eyebrow. "What makes you say that?"

She chuckled. "Aside from you and Suki, nobody really calls me by my name. Sometimes, I wonder if Toph even knows my name. She just calls me Sugar Queen or Sweetness most of the time. Sokka refers to everyone female as woman when he gets irritated, and Zuko never really calls me anything. He just sort of talks."

Aang had to admit she had a point. Toph tended to use her nicknames more often than not and Zuko never really addressed anyone expect for Mai by their names. It might have had something to do with his change from evil to good, Aang couldn't really say. But the young Firelord was getting better at addressing people by their names instead of just Avatar or waterbender or something like that. Sokka, on the other hand, was a different story. He usually didn't refer to Suki or Katara as 'woman' but at certain times, he had. It was always "please cook the food, woman" or something along those lines.

"I still don't understand why you hate your name," Aang said, glancing at her.

"I don't hate it," Katara clarified. "But I don't love it either. Besides, what's the big deal? I know I must have said it a hundred times, but it's just a name."

"But…"

"Let's face it," Katara said, grinning at him. "If I had been named Song or Jun or something, you wouldn't have felt any different about me."

"How do you know? You'd be a different person," Aang pointed out. "You wouldn't be you if you weren't Katara and I probably wouldn't feel the same if you weren't Katara."

"Are you saying you wouldn't love me if my name wasn't Katara?" She demanded, feigning indignation.

"I'm saying you wouldn't be yourself if you weren't named Katara." He repeated.

"But that makes no sense."

"Sure it does. You just have to think about it for a while," Aang answered.

"But…"

"We both know I'm right, so you might as well give up." He teased.

Katara groaned and buried her face in her hands. "You're impossible, sometimes." She said. But she was smiling.

He grinned. "I know."

Katara just shook her head in silent laughter.

Their conversation, though, was far from over. Katara was stubborn and wouldn't let go until she convinced Aang that names didn't really matter that much. She knew that names functioned as designators but she steadfastly clung to her idea that when compared to other things, names seemed trivial.

So Katara argued. And Aang countered. Minutes turned into hours and afternoon slipped into evening, and still the two sat and argued. Katara prided herself on her persistence, but she realized that the airbender could be just as persistent when he wanted to be. She could tell he wouldn't drop the subject until he convinced her or she convinced him.

It took Aang a good while to make his point, but in the end, he finally succeeded in proving his point to Katara. The more they argued, the more Katara realized she was losing and it wasn't too long before she gave up all together. There was no winning an argument like this against him.

The strange thing, she realized, was that somehow or other he managed to make her like her name or at least the way he said it. She hadn't really given much thought to her name before; it was just her name. She didn't like it or hate it. But debating with him had shown her one thing: she loved the way he said her name. There was a certain way he said it that made her heart beat faster, her pulse quicken, and made her blush. Sometimes, just the way he called her name was enough to make her lose her focus, enough to make her clumsy, and sometimes utterly incoherent. But in spite of all that, she didn't mind it. And to her surprise, she found she actually liked her name if for no other reason than that it pleased the Avatar to say it. And when she asked herself what was in a name, she realized she found the answer. Love. When they spoke each other's names, they spoke of nothing but true love.

* * *

_Thanks for all the wonderful reviews and thank you to all the wonderful reviewers! :)_


	24. Always

_Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar._

* * *

**XXIV. Always**

**_"_**_Sometimes being a brother is even better than being a superhero."_

~ Marc Brown

Sokka and Katara sat in the shade of a cherry blossom tree and watched the little children playing as Sokka waited for Suki. Even though Suki was supposed to be taking a break from her duties as leader of the Kyoshi Warriors, there were some last minute arrivals that she had to help before joining him. The two warriors were supposed to just be relaxing and enjoying their time together on Kyoshi Island, but something or other always came up that prevented Suki from coming or made her a little late. Still, Sokka wasn't the least bit mad. He knew her job was demanding and he didn't care one way or another, as long as he got to spend _some_ time with her.

Sokka let his gaze wander while he waited. Most of the villagers were sitting outside, watching their children run about as their hands kept busy with something. The children were busy playing games and generally didn't cause much trouble except for a few that often quarreled or bullied other children. Sokka noticed a group a small boys, perhaps no more than eight, picking on a girl about their age. He had half a mind to walk up to them and scare them away, but the little girl's brother, who probably wasn't much older, did just that.

Sokka smiled to himself, watching the little boy ask his sister if she was okay before he glared in the direction of the bullies. Sokka chuckled to himself as the little boy took hold of his sister's hand and led her home. He remembered being as protective of Katara, once upon a time. He still was, he supposed. It was something that would never change. She would always be his little sister.

"What's so funny?" Katara asked, following his gaze, but seeing nothing unusual.

Sokka gestured to the two siblings walking home. "They remind me of the two of us, when we were little."

Katara smiled. "Really? I don't remember you being so nice," she teased. "You were always doing the exact opposite to me."

"Not true," he cried. "There were plenty of times when I was nice to you."

"I know. Thank you." she said, gratefully.

"Now that I think of it, though, there were times when I was pretty mean to you," the warrior said thoughtfully, gazing off into the distance.

"Oh really?" Katara said in a tone that begged for elaboration.

"I remember right after you were born, when Dad let me see you for the first time. According to Gran Gran, I cried a lot. I don't remember much since I was only one, but I do remember throwing my toy at you." Not one of my finest moments, he thought, remembering how his parents had gently chided him afterwards. "And I was pretty jealous after everyone started focusing on you and not me."

"You were little," Katara pointed out. "So I don't think that counts."

"I guess not. But after we found out you were a waterbender, everyone started talking about how talented you were and everything. I was pretty jealous so I purposely cut up your favorite doll."

"So _that's_ why I could never find her," the waterbender mused. She chuckled. "If it makes any difference, I forgive you."

"Thanks," Sokka said, giving her a small smile. He turned his gaze towards the training grounds. "I wonder what's keeping Suki."

"Earth Kingdom officials," Katara said, pointing to Suki and several Kyoshi warriors leading the officials to some secluded place to discuss something. There was something vaguely familiar about them, but Sokka couldn't quite put his finger on it.

"So you're not mad at me?" Sokka mused, returning to their conversation.

"No," his sister replied. "You've done lots of nice things that more than make up for it.

"Like what?"

"Remember when we got lost in the ice fields?"

Sokka nodded, grinning. He had been five years old then. Sometime after their father had gone to hunt and he and Katara had been sent outside to play, they had lost sight of their village. For miles, the only thing that greeted them was an endless sheet of white ice that reflected the light of the sun. They had been so little, their feet hadn't made so much as dent in the snow, so there weren't even tracks to follow back. So Sokka had somehow built the tiniest of fires and given the remaining half of his snack and his extra fur pelt to four-year old Katara who had clung to him while gazing around apprehensively. Hours must have past, but no one came to their aid and when Katara started crying, it was all Sokka could do to comfort her.

"Don't cry, Katara," He had pleaded. "Someone will find us. You'll see."

"Any brother would have done that," Sokka said. "That's what siblings are for. I mean, you saved me a bunch of times too."

"Not really," Katara began, but Sokka cut her off.

"You have," he said, firmly. "You've done amazing things that have saved all of us a million times."

She just shrugged and he gave an inward groan of exasperation. Sometimes, he thought Katara failed to realize what an amazing person she was. She had done so much for him, for everyone, yet she took no credit for it.

"You know," Sokka began, but he was interrupted by someone calling his sister's name. At first, he thought it was Aang, but then he remembered that the Avatar was busy helping Oyaji with something and the figure that was coming towards them looked nothing like him.

"That's General Fong," Katara whispered to him, standing up to greet the officer who had used her to trigger the avatar state.

"I was wondering if I could have a word with you," Fong said, after greeting her.

"No," Sokka said coldly, standing up and planting himself between Katara and the General. "The last time we saw you, you almost tried to kill Katara and Aang."

"Actually, I came to apologize for that," the General said, bowing to her. "I was being foolish and it was wrong of me to try and use you to force the Avatar into the avatar state." He gave her an apologetic smile before turning around and walking away. Sokka watched him leave.

"What was that for?" Katara asked out of curiosity, after Fong was out of earshot.

"I don't trust him after that stunt he pulled when we were staying with him."

"Oh please. I'm a master waterbender now. I think I can handle him."

Sokka shrugged. "Maybe. But you're still my little sister and I'll always protect you, whether or not I do a good job."

"You do an amazing job," she said, smiling at him. "I'm glad I'm lucky enough to have a brother like you." She wondered if Sokka knew how lucky she was. Not many girls had brothers like she did. Even if she and Sokka fought from time to time, he was always there for her. Even if he was sometimes fiercely overprotective of her, she knew she wouldn't trade him for any other brother in the world. He was one of a kind.

She still remembered his words to her, the day the Southern Raiders attacked her village. Sometime after Hakoda had gone to find Kya, amidst all the commotion, she had nearly been attacked by a firebender. But he had never had the chance to get her because the minute he turned towards her, he was tackled by a small Water Tribe boy who was screaming 'leave my sister alone' and pelting him with ice cold snowballs until he was unconscious. After that, he had taken Katara to the nearest tent and told her to wait while he "kicked firebender butt" and "made them wish they never came."

"Don't worry," he had said, smiling a little and drawing himself up so he was a little taller. "I'll protect you. Those firebenders will be gone before you know it."

"Have I ever mentioned what an awesome brother you are?" Katara asked suddenly.

"No," Sokka said, modestly. "But to quote Toph, you could stand to mention it more."

Katara laughed. "You're the best brother ever."

"Just doing my job," Sokka said, leaning back and smiling wider. "I promised Dad I'd protect you and you're still alive, so I guess I did my job. Now I can relax a bit because I've got some help."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Aang seems to do a pretty good job of protecting you and keeping you from getting into trouble, but…"

"But?" Katara prodded.

Sokka grinned, his eyes twinkling. "You're a handful, little sister and Aang can't protect you all the time. I'll always be there, just in case he can't."

Katara laughed. "Always?"

"Always," he affirmed.


	25. An Airbender Thing

_I never planned on writing a one-shot with Tenzin in it (mainly because we know so little about him), but I had this idea and I just couldn't resist. Hope it's not too bad. _

_Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar_

* * *

**XXV. An Airbender Thing**

_"The love of a family is life's greatest blessing."_

~ Unknown

Katara stood in the shade of a tree, idly bending circles of water from the air. A cool breeze whistled among the treetops and danced across the water, causing the liquid to ripple in the air. The morning seemed strangely like a place of her dreams, with flowers in full bloom, sunlight dancing off silvery waters, a cloudless sky, bluer than any ocean she had ever seen. The sun was high in the sky, bathing everything in its golden light and if Katara didn't know any better, she would have sworn she was in heaven and not just her new found home that was beginning to feel more and more like paradise each day.

Katara glanced up at the sky and watched a flock of birds high above. She wondered what it was like to fly that high, to soar higher than most people had ever gone and to be able to see the rolling landscape, the mountains far in the distance, the little villages that peppered the countryside, the streams and rivers, everything. What I'd give to be an airbender sometimes, she thought, watching the birds until they were little more than tiny specks hovering in the endless blue sky.

By now, the water she was bending had lost its perfect circular form and was nothing more than an orb of liquid that was growing smaller and smaller as drops began falling. Absentmindedly, she began reshaping it. Slowly, it took form. First a head, then eyes and a smile. Slowly and carefully, she bent the water, until it faintly resembled her mother. She gave a small smile. What would her mother say if she saw her now? So much had changed since her death.

"Mama, Mama, look what I can do."

Katara turned to see a little boy running towards her with a huge smile on his face and she laughed. Tenzin was running towards her with such speed, Katara thought if he didn't slow down, they'd both fall when he collided with her. The little airbender, however, stopped short just before he collided with his mother and grinned.

"Look, Mama," the five-year old demanded. "Look what I can do." He held up one hand and Katara watched as a small column of air issued forth. Tenzin grinned wider and Katara smiled.

"You're learning fast, aren't you?"

Tenzin nodded vigorously as they started walking back to the house. "I'm going to learn airbending real fast so I can help just like you, Dad, Aunt Suki, and Uncle Sokka did."

"We were a little bit older," Katara pointed out, laughing. "But speaking of your Aunt and Uncle, I wonder where they are." She knew Sokka wasn't one for punctuality, but when he was tardy, it was usually by a few minutes, not by two hours.

Tenzin merely shrugged and rushed off to finish his airbending practice.

Sokka and Suki arrived a few minutes later and Katara wasn't surprised to see that her older brother hadn't changed one bit. Other than looking a little tired, he looked and acted every bit like the goofy Sokka he was.

"Sorry we're late," Suki apologized, balancing her four year old daughter on her hip. "_Someone_ decided to stop at a local market for food."

"I was hungry," Sokka admitted.

Katara just hugged him. "I don't care. I'm just glad you three are here."

"So," Sokka asked, looking around. "Where's my favorite nephew."

"He's your _only_ nephew," Suki said, grinning.

"He's probably off somewhere practicing his airbending," Katara said. "He's determined to learn all of it in a week."

"I hope you told him that's not possible," Suki said, chuckling. "We wouldn't want him to overwork himself."

Katara just shrugged. "I tried a thousand times and Aang must have too, but he's convinced he can do it. As for overworking himself, I'm beginning to wonder if that's possible. Sometimes, he's got too much energy."

"We know he doesn't get any of it from his uncle," Suki teased.

"Normally, I'd be mad," Sokka said, watching their daughter run off to find her cousin. "But even I can't argue with that one."

The three of them burst out laughing and only stopped when Sokka noticed Aang entering.

"Sheesh," he cried, jumping in fright. "Don't you airbenders ever knock? I nearly had a heart attack." Suki choked back a laugh.

"Sorry," Aang said, grinning. "Old habits die hard."

"Yeah," Katara said, wryly. "And Tenzin's learning how to sneak around just as quietly."

"Oh wonderful," Sokka groaned. "I'm beginning to wonder if I'll ever get out of here alive."

* * *

The sun was just beginning its descent when Katara and Suki began preparing the food for the evening meal. Even though she and Suki had often sent letters back and forth, there was still so much to catch up on. It seemed like centuries since they had seen and spoken to each other, though it was really only a few months.

"So much has changed, hasn't it?" Suki asked, watching Sokka and Aang outside.

Katara nodded. "It has, but I'm not complaining."

Suki smiled. "Me neither. It seems strange doesn't it? I feel like things have always been this way. I can't imagine a different life."

"It does seem that way," the waterbender agreed. "Honestly, I don't think I can imagine life without Tenzin anymore."

"Speaking of the kids, where are they?" Suki wondered.

Katara shrugged. "It's hard to keep track. They could be anywhere, really."

Suki gave her in incredulous stare. "Katara, are you saying…?"

Katara noticed her sister in law's mortified look and she burst out laughing. "Calm down. I didn't mean that literally. I meant they could be anywhere in this house. Tenzin's so quiet when he walks, I never hear him. Honestly, sometimes that boy is as silent as a spirit"

"Then how do you know where he is?" Suki asked.

"I don't," she replied. "But he usually never goes anywhere without asking. Besides, there's no way those two are going to get past Aang and Sokka; Aang would sense them if he did."

"True," Suki said. "But what if…"

She was interrupted by the little airbender.

"Mama?" Tenzin asked, poking his head into the kitchen. Both women jumped. "Can we go outside?"

They nodded.

"Just be careful," Katara called as the two little children raced to put on their shoes.

"He's like a ghost, isn't he?" Suki chuckled, watching her daughter follow the young airbender out the door.

"Something he inherited from his father," Katara said. "Those two come and go like spirits. One of these days, I just might die from fright, like Sokka."

Suki shook her head smiling. She didn't know much about airbenders or airbending, but she was beginning to see why Katara sometimes complained about it in her letters. Tenzin was like a spirit and if he kept sneaking up on them like that, Suki didn't think she'd make it out of the house alive either.

By evening, everyone had returned indoors and Suki and Katara were setting the last of the meal on the dinner table when Tenzin poked his head into the kitchen once again.

"Mama?" He called.

Katara jumped in surprise and the Suki dropped the pot of soup she was holding.

"Oh Aunt Suki I'm sorry," the little airbender cried, trying to airbend some of the liquid off of her, while his cousin just giggled.

"It's fine," Suki said, laughing. "I'm beginning to wonder how your parents put up with this though. That's the second time in five hours that you've scared me."

Tenzin giggled. "I scare you?"

His aunt beamed at him. "The way you sneak around this place is enough to scare anyone. Now go wash up before your Uncle starts complaining about being hungry."

Obediently, the airbender led his cousin wash their hands before seating themselves at the table.

"You know," Sokka said, once everyone was seated. "I really missed this."

"By this, do you mean spending time together or my cooking?" Katara teased.

"Both," Sokka said, popping a piece of food into his mouth. "Suki's cooking is wonderful, but this is the best dinner I've had in a long time because it's just like old times."

And it might have been the best dinner the warrior had eaten, but half way through the meal, Tenzin sneezed and unleashed a small gust of air that wasn't strong enough to knock any of them over, but strong enough to send food flying everywhere.

"That dinner couldn't have been any better," Katara laughed, later that night after she and Aang had cleaned up the mess and after Suki had given the children a bath and cleaned all the food off of them.

"You don't sound upset," Aang noted.

"I thought it was kind of cute," the young mother admitted. "Besides, I knew what I was getting myself into when I married an airbender."

"Oh really?"

Katara smiled. "Really. After all, I've gotten used to the two of you sneaking around and scaring me half to death, haven't I?"

"I'm beginning to wonder if you have," Aang teased.

"More or less," Katara replied. "I'll admit, it took me a while, but at least now every time you two sneak up on me, I don't drop things or waterbend the nearest person away."

Aang had to admit she had a point. The first time their son had snuck up on her, Katara had instinctively frozen him to the wall. The second time, she had dropped several pots and pans on top of a stunned Momo and after that she began to take extra cautions to make sure their little airbender didn't scare her.

From somewhere down the corridor, they heard Sokka give a surprised shout as he ran into the little airbender trotting back to his room with a small glass of water. Aang just chuckled and Katara smiled.

Must be an airbender thing, she thought, watching her son slip back into his room with an innocent smile. She didn't know anyone else who could come and go so quietly without making a sound.

"This is some family," Sokka muttered, smiling and shaking his head as he made his way to the kitchen to get his daughter a glass of milk.

It sure is, Katara thought, smiling to herself. But she knew she wouldn't trade them for anything in the world. She loved her little family to pieces. Who ever said you had to have the perfect family to be truly happy?

* * *

_I don't think I did this topic any justice at all, but oh well. Reviews are greatly appreciated. Thank you to all the wonderful people who left reviews. You're all terrific. ^_^_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	26. Sick Days

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything._

* * *

**XVI. Sick Days**

_"If you treat a sick child like an adult and a sick adult like a child, everything usually works out pretty well"_

~ Ruth Carlisle

Katara always knew that being around sick airbenders was slightly dangerous but she never realized how dangerous it was until Tenzin caught a cold. It started with a runny nose and the sniffles. Really, Katara had no idea how he had caught it. The weather was cool, but she had always made sure her little son was dressed warmly before she sent him outside to play. It wasn't as if he stayed out very long either. Even when he was practicing what little airbending he could do, Aang never kept him out for too long in the cool, chilly weather.

So how did he manage to come down with a cold? Katara wondered, watching as the little four year old sneezed and hovered in the air for a split second. Tenzin just sniffed and gave his mother a small smile.

"Mama, can I go outside and play?" He asked, gazing longingly through his window at the sunlit garden outside.

"I don't think it's a good idea," Katara said.

"But…" Tenzin began but was cut off by a sneeze that sent him a good foot in the air and that produced enough wind to make several things in his room fly about. Katara gave an inward groan. She knew a few herbal remedies that normally were enough to cure these colds and fevers, but they all seemed ineffective on little Tenzin.

"If I can't go outside, then can you tell me a story?" he asked eagerly, his blue eyes shining.

Katara smiled. "I don't see why not. Which story would you like to hear?"

"The story about how you saved the world!"

Katara laughed. "That's a long one."

"No it's not," her son objected. "Dad told it to me once. He told me the whole thing right before bed."

I wonder how much he changed or left out, Katara thought to herself.

"Your father is a better story teller than I am," Katara said. "I don't think I can tell you about everything we did in one day, so you're going to have to pick something."

"Hhm," the little airbender said thoughtfully, contorting his face in concentration while his mother resisted the urge to laugh. "Dad said you once dressed up as the Painted Lady. Can you tell me about that one?"

Leave it to Aang to mention something like that to him, Katara thought.

"Haven't you heard it a hundred times by now?" the young mother wondered. Who knew how many times Aang had told it to their son?

"Pretty, pretty please," Tenzin pleaded, giving his mother an irresistible look.

"Oh alright," Katara said, giving in. Tenzin smiled and gave a silent cheer.

"How much do you know?"

"You and dad were travelling, right?"

Katara nodded.

"Dad said there was a village being…ter…um…terri…terrized by firebenders."

Katara chuckled. "I think you mean _terrorized_."

"Yeah, that's it," he said. "Dad said you dressed up as a spirit to help save the people and the village."

"Sort of," Katara said. "But it wasn't as easy as that."

Tenzin leaned forward, eagerly waiting to hear her tale, so Katara narrated the entire episode from the beginning. She didn't understand why her son was so fascinated by the idea of his parents destroying a factory or nearly getting caught since most of their tales involved something like that, but she thought it was adorable the way Tenzin's eyes widened when she came to the climax of the story, or how he held his breath when he thought the story was getting particularly exciting.

By the time she had finished her tale, the little airbender was staring thoughtfully at a piece of blank parchment on the table by his bed. Katara's curiosity was piqued, but Tenzin immediately turned his gaze to her and grinned.

"Mama, can I have some paint to paint with?" He begged.

"If you want," she replied, chuckling to herself. Tenzin hopped off his bed and disappeared, returning a few minutes later with his hands full of all the necessary supplies.

"I'll be in the kitchen if you need me," Katara said, getting up and disappearing from the room. Tenzin hummed to himself and set to work.

"Well, look who finally decided to show up," Katara said, noticing Aang was finally home. "Where have you been?"

The airbender smiled. "Out. And there's something for you." He handed Katara a piece of paper and grinned.

"A letter from Sokka? Since when does he start writing to me?"

Aang shrugged and was about to reply, but was interrupted by the arrival of their son. Tenzin was covered from head to toe in blue paint. He had strange lines and triangle-like structures all over his arms and feet and a strange line painted on his forehead. Aang and Katara were trying really hard not to laugh, but Tenzin was smiling a huge smile as he stood before his parents and the two young parents soon burst out laughing.

"What on earth did you do?" Katara wondered, wiping away a few tears.

"I painted myself," the little boy said proudly. "Now I'm just like Dad."

This had the two laughing even harder when they realized that the strange lines that the little airbender had drawn over himself were supposed to resemble the tattoos the airbenders received after having mastered airbending.

"I'm a master airbender now," Tenzin cried, sniffling a little and forgetting that he had yet to master the most basic moves.

"Not quite," Katara said, taking in his appearance once again. "But you're getting there."

"Aw," he said, defeated. "So I'm not a master airbender?"

"Not yet," Aang said. "But you will be."

"Really?" he asked, perking up. "By tomorrow?"

"It takes a little longer than that," Aang said. "But if you've got your mother's knack for learning, you should pick it up in no time."

"Why don't you go wash up?" Katara suggested. "Lunch is almost ready." Tenzin obediently trotted to his room and Katara turned to face Aang.

"So, I have a knack for learning?"

He nodded.

"And what is that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing," Aang conceded. "Just that you mastered waterbending in so little time. If Tenzin's anything like you, maybe he'll have mastered airbending by the time he's ten."

"I think he'll master it quicker than most people master elements. It only took you a few months to master fire, water, and earth. And you're a good teacher."

Katara heard Tenzin sneeze again and it was followed by the strangest sound she had ever heard. She made her way to his room, surprised to find that several things in his room, including his night side table had toppled over and that Tenzin himself was nowhere to be found.

"Mama, I think I need some help."

Katara looked up and gasped in surprise. Tenzin was hanging onto an ornamental lamp that hung from the ceiling.

"I kinda airbendted myself up here."

Katara instinctively opened her mouth to correct him, but instead tried to think of ways of getting him down. The ceiling was fairly high and even though Tenzin was an airbender, Katara was afraid to tell him to let go and airbend himself down. And she didn't trust herself to catch him if he merely let go and fell down.

"Could you bring me some lunch?" the little boy wondered, arranging himself so he was more comfortable.

Katara bit her lip, her mind turning furiously, thinking of anything that would get him down.

"Katara, are you okay?" Aang asked, coming to stand beside her and noticing she looked distressed.

"He needs help," she said, gesturing to their son who was being remarkably calm about the whole ordeal.

Aang just blinked at Tenzin before laughing and Tenzin soon joined in though he had no idea why.

"Aang," Katara wailed. "This is serious."

Aang stopped laughing, but he was still smiling. "It's all part of being an airbender," he said, grinning.

"Oh really? How many times have you gotten stuck to a ceiling like that?"

"Plenty of times," he responded, helping Tenzin get down.

Katara sighed and looked around the room. "This place is a mess. Oh well. As long as you're here to get Tenzin out of situations like that, I don't care."

"Can I have lunch now?" Tenzin asked, innocently as if nothing had happened.

Katara and Aang exchanged a glance and all three of them burst out laughing.

The following day, as a result of spending so much time near Tenzin, Katara and Aang came down with a cold. And Katara didn't mind being sick the least bit, until Aang started sneezing and sending her flying. By the end of the first day, she was sick, tired, and sore to boot. And as Aang sneezed for the hundredth time, sending her high up in the air before she tumbled back down and landed with a groan on the bed, she revised her previous statement. Being around sick airbenders wasn't slightly dangerous. It _was _dangerous. But they were her airbenders and as long as Aang took the trouble to try and catch her after she was sent hurtling through the air, she didn't complain.


	27. Incorrigible

_Disclaimer: I don't own ATLA._

* * *

**XVII. Incorrigible**

"_The most terrible poverty is loneliness and the feeling of being unloved._"

~ Mother Theresa

Sometimes, when the nights are cool, the guards leave the windows open. Sometimes, she thinks she can see silhouettes stealing in through them, but she knows there's nothing there. Sometimes, she thinks she sees her mother and she feels something strange wash over her, but it goes as quickly as it comes.

Her hair is a mess. It hasn't been combed for nearly weeks now and her nails are dirty. She knows she must look like a mess, but she no longer cares. There is no one to impress and therefore no need to dress immaculately.

She hears voices in the corridor once more. They are hushed whispers but days of being locked up in a cell with nothing to do but listen have improved her hearing. The voices are rising. They are talking about her. And she smiles.

_Pity me if you want_, she thinks, smiling to no one in particular. _It makes no difference to me. I am stronger than you could possibly imagine._

When the guards come in to serve her the evening meal, she is cleaner than usual. Her hair is no longer loose, but neatly tied behind her and the stains miraculously removed from her dress. She smiles an eerie smile as the men set the plates before her. They think she is behaving strangely but she doesn't feel the need to tell them that princesses will remain princesses even if they are locked away in a high security prison.

As she eats, she thinks. She knows that people think she is crazy, but she doesn't mind. So much the better if they think she is deranged and unbalanced; it would be so much easier for her when she broke out of prison. People would avoid her. It would be easy to reclaim the kingdom in Ozai's name and become Firelord.

Her smile widens. _Call me crazy, but I am smarter than all of you put together_, she says silently as the guards walk away. And as the guards disappear down the corridor, Azula lets out a laugh.

Her sense of time is gone; she no longer knows what day it is, how long she has been there, or even how long it has been since her last meal. She no longer recalls how long it has been since she formulated her master plan. But none of that matters. Despite what others think, she still has her wits about her and her mind is sharper than ever. Her escape plan is fool proof and in a few months, perhaps, if everything goes according to plan, she will no longer be confined to her prison cell.

She doesn't mind it really. It's a small price to pay considering what could have happened to her. Being locked up in a jail cell is really no different than being locked up in a room with nothing to do; it makes no difference to her. The one thing she can't stand is the pitying looks the guards give her. The visitors are just as bad. Sometimes they pass her cell just to get a glimpse of the "deranged" princess before making their way to see someone else. Azula doesn't mind people watching her, but the pitying glances are annoying and she wishes they would stop. Still, they are nothing compared to the pitying glance Zuko and Katara had given her right before she was locked away. The image is still imprinted in her memory and she shudders. And almost reluctantly, she finds herself wondering what the waterbender and her brother are doing.

* * *

"Are you really going to let them do that?"

"Let who do what?" Aang asked, turning to face Katara.

"Let the prison guards release Azula once a day for a 'walk' or whatever they called it."

He shrugged. "It's really up to Zuko, but I wouldn't mind if they did that."

"But she's not herself anymore," Katara pointed out. "She's dangerous."

"She's also human," Aang said. "She can't be locked away forever and never go out."

Katara was reluctant to admit he had a point. "You have to admit though, she's done some pretty bad things."

"I know," he replied. "But maybe in spite of all that, she deserves a second chance. It might be too soon to release her from prison, but there's no harm in letting her leave her cell from time to time. She hasn't tried anything in a while and even if she does, we'll stop her."

"Maybe," Katara replied, mulling over what Aang had just said. She didn't like Azula very much but she knew that if she was in the princess's position, she would also be dying for some reprieve from her bleak jail cell.

She told Zuko as much, a few days later, when she ran into him on the terrace. At first, the young Firelord listened to her, but as she continued, his demeanor gradually changed.

"You sound like Aang. I really can't believe you feel sorry for her." He grumbled.

"I know she did some pretty bad things," Katara conceded. "But she doesn't really deserve this. Do you know some guards are making money off of this?"

"How?"

"They give a tour of the prison that ends right outside Azula's cell."

"That's ridiculous. How do you know?"

"You asked me and Toph to make sure everything was okay there, remember?"

"Oh yeah." he said. He opened his mouth to reply, but hesitated. "But… Azula will always be Azula."

"Maybe, but she doesn't deserve to be treated like that. If I was in her place, I know I wouldn't like it"

Zuko released another sigh. "Maybe you're right. But I won't get a chance to stop by the prison today."

"Your uncle's going," Katara replied. "Maybe I'll go with him."

Zuko nodded. Deep down, though, he was wondering if it was really even worth it.

* * *

Azula sits in her cell and endures the taunting. She derives a little amusement at the crowds of people shuffling in to see her, but generally, she is annoyed. She doesn't care that the people are making fun of her; in reality, they are laughing at nothing because there was no insane princess in her cell, only a clever, cunning, imprisoned monarch who would soon break free and exact her revenge. She is annoyed because the people are looking at her as if she is a weak, helpless little thing and she hates it.

As the days turn into weeks, and the weeks into months, Azula's resolve slips away and the teasing begins to get to her. It doesn't hurt, but she can't stand to see that people think she is pathetic and weak and she wishes they would stop.

She glances at the people shuffling past her cell. Today, the guards haven't brought a single tour group, but there are still some visitors to see family and friends. Every now and then, she hears voices.

"_How are you? It's been so long. I can't wait until you come home again._"

"_I miss you._"

"_Come home soon_."

Azula frowns as she hears them prattling away. She suddenly feels left out. There aren't many (if any) people in the world who would say that to her. No one misses her. She knows her own father doesn't even care anymore. She wants someone to care about her. She is envious of Mai and Ty Lee. Mai has Zuko and Azula knows that even though Ty Lee hadn't found someone the last time she saw her, with her bubbly personality, it wouldn't be hard for Ty Lee to find someone. Even the goofy Water Tribe warrior (who she thinks is somewhat of a failure) and the Avatar have someone. Azula sighs. I have no one, she realizes. I'm all alone.

Her thoughts are interrupted by a handful of young people standing just outside her cell. They are a small group, perhaps four of five girls and boys, not much older than herself but they are laughing at her.

_Weakling_, she hears them say. _Pathetic._

Azula endures their taunting, but in reality it hurts. Every word that falls from their lips cuts her like a knife. She cannot believe she has fallen so low. The teasing goes on for a few minutes until an unlikely person puts an end to it.

"Leave her alone."

Azula looks up to see the last person she ever dreamed of finding in her cell. The waterbender glances calmly at the shocked expression on Azula's face and on the faces of the boys and girls teasing her. They cannot believe someone is defending her.

"What are you doing here?" Azula demands.

Katara ignores her question and hands Azula her water skin.

"You look like you could use it." There is no contempt in her voice, only kindness which gives Azula a funny feeling. She takes the water skin willingly. She can't remember the last time she has had clean water.

"Why are you giving this to me?" Azula asks. "Without it, you're defenseless."

Katara doesn't bother to tell that it isn't true. "You wouldn't hurt me."

"I'm not weak," the princess snaps. "Save your pity for someone else. I don't want it."

"I'm not offering it," Katara replies.

"Don't you dare feel sorry for me either. I've had more than enough of that. I'm not weak or helpless."

"I don't feel sorry for you," she says, as Azula's amber eyes glare at her. "I know you're not weak or helpless. I've seen what you can do."

The boys and girls stare at Katara as if she is crazy and Azula becomes suspicious. There really wasn't any need for Katara to visit her, so why did she even bother coming?

"Why are you doing this?" Azula asks at last. "You didn't have to and it's not like you really care."

"I just didn't think you deserved this," Katara replies, gesturing to the group who is still watching the princess. Azula glances at her and turns away and sighing, Katara follows the group of boys and girls out. But as she leaves, Azula speaks.

"Thank you, Katara."

Katara stops and the surprise is clearly visible on her face. Katara doesn't know if she is more surprised because Azula is thanking her or because Azula knows her name. But she gives the princess a small smile before disappearing down the corridor. Azula stares at the water skin, deep in thought, until she notices another figure in standing where Katara stood. She glances briefly at her older brother before turning to stare at the wall.

"Why are you here?" There is no venom in her voice, no bitterness, no anger. She says it plainly, as a normal person might.

"This is going to sound really awkward," Zuko replies, fidgeting a little. "But it's really weird not having you around, chasing us or something."

Azula glances at him in surprise. It is not the type of caring that she wants, but it's still caring and she knows she'll take it in whatever form she can get.

"You don't feel sorry for me," she notes.

"Why should I?" Zuko asks. "It's not like you're weak or helpless or anything. You've probably got some escape plan already worked out."

"Then why don't you just let me go?"

"You're incorrigible. There's no guarantee you won't go back to your old self once I let you out."

"But…"

"Sorry, Azula. Even though it feels strange not to have you chasing us around, I don't think setting either you or our father free is an option just yet." Azula frowns. "I'm really sorry."

Azula watches him leave and Zuko is halfway out of the door before she speaks.

"Are you really?"

* * *

_Thank you for all the lovely reviews! _

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	28. Passion

_Disclaimer: I don't own ATLA. :(_

* * *

**XVIII. Passion**

_"You know that when I hate you, it's because I love you to a point of passion that unhinges my soul."_

~ Julie de Lespinasse

"Is it just me, or is Katara more gloomy than usual?" Sokka asked, stealing a glance at his little sister sitting by herself some distance away. It wasn't usually like her to distance herself from the others, but she had given some excuse (which Sokka thought was totally unconvincing) and wandered off to sit by herself.

"She was fine all afternoon," Suki said, watching the young waterbender idly bend her element. Her eyes were staring blankly at the horizon while her hands moved in circles, preventing the water from falling on her.

"She's been down all week," Toph said casually. "Even if she hides it, her vibrations give it all away."

Zuko nudged Mai and motioned in Katara's direction. "I think you're starting to rub off on her."

Mai shrugged and cast a sidelong glance at Katara. She did look unhappy, but Mai doubted she had anything to do with it.

"Maybe she's just homesick or something," Aang suggested. If she ever had been, she had hid it well because none of them, not even Toph, had caught her wishing she was back in the South Pole.

Sokka gazed thoughtfully at his sister. Homesickness was a plausible idea; it was a more likely reason as to why she was unhappy than any of his theories, in any case. But how were they going to remedy that?

"I've got it!" Sokka cried, jumping up. Everyone, including Katara, glanced in his direction and Sokka sat back down and whispered to the others. "I know how to cheer her up."

"Enlighten us, great one," Toph teased.

Ignoring her, Sokka continued. Aang tried to pay attention, but he was more focused on the young waterbender sitting by herself than what Sokka was saying. It wasn't until Sokka called his name that he diverted his attention back to the others.

"Think you can do that?" Sokka asked.

"Do what?"

"Try to keep Katara occupied. Don't tell her what we're doing."

Aang wanted to point out that he had no idea what they were doing because he hadn't really been paying attention, but he just nodded and agreed to follow Sokka's plan. He had no idea what sort of surprise the Water Tribe warrior had for his sister, but he hoped it would somehow cheer her up.

* * *

"Hey Aang, where are Sokka, Zuko, and Toph going?"

Aang turned to face Katara."I think they said they were going up the mountain."

"To do what? It's a volcano."

Aang shrugged. "I think Zuko wanted to practice firebending with lava or some crazy idea like that."

"Oh. I wonder if I can join them," Katara said, making a move to follow them.

"No," Aang said hastily. "You…um…can't."

"Why not?" Katara demanded.

"It's…too dangerous." He said the words almost reluctantly, though with good reason. Katara hated it whenever people brought that subject up.

"Oh, so Toph can go with them even though she's blind and I can't?"

"Yeah," he said lamely.

Katara glared daggers at him.

Aang was beginning to wonder if he should tell her the truth. He still didn't know exactly what Sokka had planned, but it wouldn't hurt to tell Katara that her brother was planning a surprise for her. After all, it would still be a surprise since neither of them knew exactly what was going on.

"Are you guys scamming again?" Katara asked. "Is that why you don't want me to go?"

"What? No," Aang responded, truthfully. "No one is scamming."

"Then why can't I…?" She stopped short as she noticed the others had vanished from view.

"Oh, I can't believe this," she fumed. "You had this planned all along, didn't you?"

"Had what planned?" Aang asked, blankly.

"Stalling, so I couldn't go with them."

"No I didn't."

"Then why couldn't I go with them?"

"I told you," Aang said. "It's…"

"I can handle myself just fine," Katara snapped. It annoyed her to no end that Aang thought it was too dangerous for her to go up a volcano but Toph, in spite of being blind, could.

"I never said you couldn't," Aang replied, knowing that he was only drawing himself deeper into an argument he really didn't want to have, over something as trivial as a surprise.

"Well you certainly act like it," Katara snapped. "You're just as bad as Sokka sometimes."

"No I'm not," he said, defensively. "When have I ever…?"

"Right before we went to Roku's temple, you tried to sneak away without us because you thought it was too dangerous."

"Well it was," he pointed out. "Or is almost getting killed not dangerous enough for you?"

"Fine," She conceded. "Maybe that was dangerous. But how is this more dangerous than running a Fire Navy blockade?"

"It might not be more dangerous, but it's still dangerous."

"Did Sokka put you up to this?" Katara asked.

"No," Aang lied.

"That volcano has been dormant for over a hundred years. If nothing has happened yet, I doubt anything will happen, so I still don't see why I can't go."

Aang sighed. "Because you're…"

"Don't you dare say it's because I'm a girl."

"I wasn't going to," Aang said. "Besides, that more of Sokka's thing."

"But you're picking up on it."

"I am not. Name one time when I said that."

"I could name a hundred," Katara shot back, knowing it was a lie. "But it still wouldn't make a difference."

"I really don't know why you're arguing with me. You could have gone already," Aang said. "It's not like you needed my permission."

"Oh sure, blame it all on me," Katara retorted. "I'm always the crazy one. But you're right; I could have gone, but I have no idea where they went and apparently, it's too dangerous for a girl to take a walk by herself."

"Katara, you're being ridiculous. Since when has anyone saying something was too dangerous stopped you from doing it anyway?"

"Why are you blaming it on me? You do that too."

"I know but…"

"It's different because you're not a girl, right?"

"Would you stop putting words in my mouth? I never said that," Aang snapped.

"You didn't have to."

"Now you're being stupid."

Katara just frowned. "Thanks, that makes me feel much better."

"I'm just saying you could have gone. You usually do what you want anyway."

"And I'm not allowed to do what I want?"

Aang groaned. "I never said that. Why can't you be like other girls and just let some things go?" The instant he said those words, he regretted them. If there was ever a time when Aang wished he were dead, now was it.

"Well I'm sorry I'm such a pain then," Katara shot back. "And I'm sorry I can't be like other girls."

"Katara, I didn't mean that."

But she didn't hear him. She had already turned around and started walking away. Aang sighed. The truth was, he had long ago forgotten why they were arguing. He had been trying to come up with a better excuse to deter Katara from joining the others, but obviously, lying wasn't his expertise. He could lie about as well as a hog-monkey could sing.

_I hope you can explain this, Sokka, _he thought. _Otherwise, I don't think Katara will ever forgive me_.

Katara had gotten lost long ago. She had no idea where she was, and though a part of her was worried she'd never find her way back home, a part of her couldn't care less. She didn't care if no one ever found her in that meadow; at that moment, she rather preferred it if no one found her because she was a mess. And ever since she had left Aang, she couldn't stop thinking about their conversation.

_You're an idiot, Katara_, she said to herself, angrily wiping away a few tears. _Only you would start a fight with Aang and then have the audacity to accuse him of starting it._

She sighed. She knew she had tendency to get riled up over trivial things, and that sometimes, her temper got the better of her; it was something she had never quite outgrown. She felt awful though. She had been completely unreasonable and Aang had told her as much. Instead of dropping the argument, she just had to continue it.

_You've got no one to blame but yourself. He was right and you know it_.

Katara had no problem admitting she was wrong, but even that didn't make her feel better. She might not have told Aang outright that she hated him, but looking back, everything she had said could have implied that she was furious with him.

Maybe that was why Aang had wished she was like other girls. Katara didn't really care about the rest of their argument. The only thing that had really bothered her was when Aang had asked why she couldn't be like other girls. It scared her and hurt her at the same time. Did he really mean it? Was he bored of her already?

"I guess it serves me right," she whispered. Only she could find someone she knew she didn't deserve and ruin whatever little happiness they had.

The thought of Aang not wanting her scared her, but the thought of living life without him scared her more. She wasn't the type of girl to spend every waking minute crying until she could no longer cry or the type of girl who wallowed in misery and self-pity, but she didn't know if she could function without him. It wasn't like she was wholly dependent on Aang, but she was so used to him and he had become such an integral part of her life, that if he left, it would almost be as if someone as close as Sokka was leaving her. The more Katara thought about it, the sicker she felt. She really had been mean to Aang, and he hadn't even done anything wrong. But she couldn't help but be a little angry with him for wishing she was different.

By the time Katara decided to head back, it was twilight and the crescent moon was slowly rising. She knew she should have made some attempt to find her way back, but she didn't really want to stumble around in the dark, so she just sat in the meadow until she slowly drifted off to sleep.

When she woke up the following morning, Katara was surprised to find herself in her room. She thought she vaguely remembered someone taking her home and vaguely remembered seeing flashes of yellow and orange. She wondered if it was Aang but she dismissed that idea as soon as it crossed her mind. She was sure he wouldn't have gone after her after what she had said to him.

Breakfast that morning was awkward to say the least. Aang hadn't even shown up (though he had a legitimate excuse) and the others had presented Katara with a surprise. Now, as she sat locked up in her room, she realized she hadn't even bothered with her surprise. She had left the dining room in a hurry and hadn't even bothered to thank the others or register what exactly her surprise was. She was still puzzled as to why they had surprised her in the first place. It wasn't her birthday or anything and Sokka hadn't really explained his reasoning behind the surprise.

The day passed slowly for Katara, only because she shut herself in her room. She really didn't know why she did it, but it just felt…right. She really didn't want the others to find out about her argument with Aang, but apparently it wasn't much of a secret because before she knew how, Sokka was in her room demanding an explanation.

"What happened? You've been acting weird all day. And where were you last night? We were worried sick."

"Um…I…" Katara gave up trying to create an excuse altogether. "I really don't know."

"You're lucky Aang found you. None of us would have thought to look for you there."

So Aang had been the one to find her. Katara was glad she had been asleep the entire time. She wanted to ask where exactly she had been but refrained from doing so.

"So, Toph says you and Aang are avoiding each other." It wasn't a question, it was a statement.

Sometimes, Toph's sense of vibrations really annoyed Katara.

"No we're not," she said, lamely, and knowing Sokka didn't believe a word of it.

"You're lying. Aang told me what happened. He thought you'd be mad at him."

Katara groaned. "I'm angrier at myself."

"You do know I put him up to it, right?" Sokka asked. "It was the only way to keep you from following us. I made him stay behind to talk you out of it, but we both know the poor kid can't lie for his life, so you really shouldn't have been so hard on him."

Katara had half a mind to waterbend Sokka across the room. "Thanks a lot, Sokka."

Sokka grinned sheepishly. "Anytime, sis."

Katara found Aang grooming Appa outside. She was slightly afraid that Aang would be mad at her, but based on what Sokka had said, she didn't think he would be. When he noticed Katara, he gave her a small smile and Katara felt a little better.

"Aang, I'm really sorry for what I said yesterday. I don't expect to be forgiven, but…"

"Katara, there's nothing to forgive. It's kind of my fault; I probably should've come up with a better excuse, but we both know that sometimes I can lie about as well as Sokka can draw."

Katara chuckled. "I guess so. But then why were you avoiding me?"

He shrugged. "I thought you'd be mad at me for what I said. I didn't mean any of it."

"Even the part about wishing I was more like other girls?"

He nodded. "No offense, but you'd have to be completely out of your mind to believe that."

She raised an eyebrow. "Oh really?"

He nodded. "You don't need to change for anyone."

"Not even for you?" She asked slyly, returning to her old self.

"Definitely not for me," he replied, grinning. "I love you just the way you are."


	29. Impossible

_Disclaimer: I don't own ATLA._

* * *

**XXIX. Impossible**

"_Every man is afraid of something. That's how you know he's in love with you; when he is afraid of losing you_."

~Unknown

In the land of spirits, of strange apparitions and creatures, there is neither darkness nor light. There is neither day nor night, just the transitioning of time that is so quick, so sudden that even the spirits themselves don't notice it. The sky changes shades before the strange creatures that call the spirit world home have time to register it.

In the recesses of a cave, cloaked by inky blackness, he waits patiently. He knows waiting is pointless, that he will have to wait an eternity to get what he seeks, but he waits nevertheless. The spirit world is full of strange noises, but Koh disregards them. He sits patiently and passes time by staring idly at the things around him.

When he gets bored, he peruses through his vast collection of faces, recalling how he stole each one. They were rather easy to get; he hadn't had to do anything extreme on his part to get them. But if ever there was a thing he wanted, it was a challenge. He wants someone to come to him with a new face, someone like the Avatar, but he knows it is wishful thinking to imagine that after all this time, after all he has done to the past Avatars, that Avatar Aang will just appear before him.

He no longer remembers why or how he took her face. The memories of his encounter with Avatar Kuruk are growing dim. He doesn't remember much of the fight either. But for the time being, Ummi's face is still his and Kuruk is still hunting for him. Koh laughs to himself. He looks forward to the challenge. He doesn't know whether he will win or lose, but it's something he waits for anyway.

It has been centuries since he has added a human face to his collection, centuries since he has stolen the face of a beautiful maiden. He has heard rumors of a fabled beauty, little whisperings passed on by spirits of a young woman whose beauty was equal to that of Ummi's and the Face Stealer smiles wistfully. Katara. He savors her name like an exotic fruit. If only Avatar Aang would bring his lovely Katara here. Oh, how he would love to add her face to his collection. But he knows the chance will never come. She is too heavily guarded; Aang will never bring her. Stealing her face would be the ultimate challenge and Koh longs to do it. But he is in no mood to incur the wrath of the Avatars, past or present.

So, he sits in the inky blackness of his cave and waits. Time passes slowly, but for an immortal spirit like Koh, time has little meaning. He sits and waits, waits for a chance he knows will never come. But when you're an immortal spirit, what else can you do?

* * *

"I can't believe the day is almost over," Katara sighed, watching the sunset. "It feels like we just got up."

"Some people just did," Aang laughed, pointing to a bleary eyed Sokka waking up from his nap and smiling sheepishly at Suki.

Katara smiled. "Only Sokka would fall asleep with a girl while watching the sun set. It's a shame he missed most of it though. It was beautiful."

"The monks used to take us to the top of the mountain sometimes to watch them," Aang remembered. "I don't know what the view was like from the other temples, but the sunsets always looked better standing at the top of the Southern Air Temple."

"Is the spirit world anything like this?" Katara wondered, letting her eyes roam around.

"Not really," Aang admitted. "It's…different."

"It must be really beautiful there."

The airbender shrugged. "I guess it is; I haven't really been there very many times."

"Do you think I could see it some time?" Katara asked, tentatively.

"No." he said, not bothering to mask the disapproval in his voice.

"Why not?"

"You can't go there."

"Iroh's been there," Katara pointed out, slightly irritated.

"There's no proof, though," Aang pointed out. "He might really have been there, but he never said anything about it."

"Well if he can go, how come I can't?"The waterbender demanded.

"It's not even that great there," Aang said. "Besides, there are spirits that wouldn't think twice about harming you."

"I'm a master waterbender now," Katara protested. "I think I can handle it."

"Katara, there's no bending in the spirit world. And even if you could handle, I don't think you'd like actually going there."

* * *

"Katara, you look depressed," Iroh noted. "What's wrong?"

Katara looked up from her cup of tea and gazed at the firebender. He was smiling at her in that kind, fatherly way that begged for her to elaborate.

Katara sighed. "It's complicated," she said. "I think Aang is angry with me."

Iroh chuckled. "It takes a great deal to make the Avatar angry and it would take a great deal more to make him angry at _you_."

Katara shrugged. "I don't know. We were talking about the spirit world and I just wondered if I could…see it, and…" she faltered. "Did I do anything wrong?"

"No," Iroh said, slowly. "You didn't, but I can understand why he was reluctant to entertain the idea of taking you there."

"So you have been to the spirit world?" Katara asked.

Iroh sidestepped her question. "The spirit world is a dangerous place," he said, solemnly. "From what I've heard, there's no bending there and not many mortals can go there and return to the physical world alive."

"But if I went with Aang, wouldn't it be different?"

"I don't think so," the old firebender said thoughtfully, stroking his beard. "There are things that even Aang can't protect you from in the spirit world."

"Like what?" Katara asked. She knew that even with his status as the Avatar, Aang wasn't completely invincible, but Iroh's former statement was disconcerting.

"You must have heard the story of Avatar Kuruk," Iroh said, and Katara nodded. She had heard it often enough from various members of her tribe. In the days before she and Sokka joined Aang, all the young mothers would repeat the story which had eventually become a kind of legend, the kind that scared little children into being obedient. "It is said that his wife was stolen by a spirit."

"Koh, the Face Stealer," Katara replied.

Iroh nodded. "The spirits aren't the type to forgive easily. It may be that Koh still holds a grudge against Aang."

"Why Aang?" Katara demanded. "It was Avatar Kuruk who attacked him in the first place, though he had a right to in any case."

Iroh shrugged. "For an immortal spirit, one Avatar isn't much different than the next. And spirits like Koh take what they can get. If Koh knows anything about you, he'll wait for you."

"How would he know anything about me?"

Iroh laughed. "I think it's safe to assume that you have made quite an impression on Aang that all avatars, past, present, and future, couldn't forget you." Katara blushed. "That being said, I don't think it would be too difficult for spirits to find out about you."

"But then why wouldn't he just steal me like he stole Ummi?"

Iroh smiled. "Because he knows he can't; I doubt Aang would let him. You're too heavily guarded, so to speak."

Katara stared at him stupidly. "Too heavily…"

Iroh gave a soft smile and chuckled. "I can understand your desire to see the spirit world, but perhaps it would be best if you didn't go?"

Katara nodded. "I guess so. I'd rather not meet face stealing spirits anyway," she said, grinning.

* * *

The only thing Aang liked better than watching the stars, was watching the stars with Katara, but that night, Katara was quieter than usual. She seemed pensive and Aang wanted to ask her what was wrong, but he knew she'd tell him eventually if she wanted to. So for a while, the two of them just sat in silence until Katara spoke.

"Did Avatar Kuruk ever get Ummi back?"

"I don't think so," he replied.

"Do you think he'll get her back?"

"Yeah, I do."

"How can you be sure?" Katara wondered.

Aang shrugged. "He loved her, so I'm sure he'll keep trying until he gets her back. He's got forever anyway."

"Is that why you wouldn't let me go, because you were afraid of the same thing happening to me?"

"I guess," Aang said, sounding somewhat unsure. "I mean I never really thought about Koh. I just assumed you wanted to go there to see your mother."

"My mother?" she repeated, somewhat surprised. "I didn't think it was possible to see her again but…"

"It's not," Aang said sadly, meeting her gaze. "At least, I don't think it is. That's why I said you wouldn't like it."

"It's okay," Katara said, giving him a small smile. "Maybe it's better if I don't meet her, even if I had the chance. It'll be harder for me."

"I'm sorry," he said. Katara just gave him another smile before turning her gaze back to the stars. The two didn't talk until the others had fallen asleep and until Aang decided they should return inside.

"Thank you," she said softly, giving him a quick kiss.

"For what?"

"For trying to make sure I don't end up like Ummi, for protecting me even though I'm probably not worth it."

He rolled his eyes. "You _are_ worth it," he said. "And don't forget it."

"How can I?" she demanded, laughing. "It's impossible. You make sure I never do."

He grinned. "I know. That's the way it's meant to be. You're worth everything."

* * *

_Thanks for all the lovely reviews! :)_

_~ Cassie_


	30. Fallen

_Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar._

* * *

**XXX. Fallen**

"_We are all fallen creatures and all very hard to live with_."

~ C.S. Lewis

"There he is, Miss Katara." The prison guard said this contemptuously and Katara couldn't help but gape at the prisoner before her.

"Firelord Ozai?"

He gave a small smile. He loved how people still referred to him as Firelord even though he had been deposed.

"The fool scratched himself silly," the guard explained, pointing to the former Firelord's bruised arm. "He's turning out to be like his daughter. The prison warden doesn't want him to get sick and infect the other prisoners so…"

"You want me to heal him," Katara finished, sighing. Sometimes, she hated being a healer, simply because it put her in contact with people she'd rather not see. She glanced at the guards and then back at Ozai. She knew there wasn't anything he could do to her but she still didn't really want to go anywhere near him.

"We'll be outside if you need us, Miss Katara," the guard said, following his companion out the door. "Don't hesitate to call us."

Katara watched them leave and gave a small shudder as the door clicked shut behind them. Taking a deep breath, she turned to Ozai and wordlessly began healing his arm. The former Firelord found it infuriating that she wouldn't make eye contact with him or treat him any differently than she treated a commoner.

"Look at me," he hissed, grabbing her wrist and pulling her so she was kneeling before him. "You will treat me like a king."

"I'll treat you the way you deserve to be treated," she retorted, wriggling out of his grasp. "I had no obligation to heal you. I could have just left you the way you were."

"You will heal me and you show me respect. I am the Phoenix King."

"You're a pathetic old man stripped of his firebending and who has no life."

Ozai shot her a nasty look and for the first time, Katara was glad that the thick metal bars that separated them were there.

"Heal me," Ozai barked.

Katara met his gaze. "I will heal you, but I will never respect you."

Ozai didn't say anything in response and Katara just worked on his arm. When she was done, she made her way to the door but was surprised to find it was locked. Maybe the guards just forgot, she thought, as she looked through the small grating. She couldn't see much, but she could make out some commotion coming from down the hall. She tried the door again, but when it wouldn't budge, proceeded to bang on it but no one came to her aid.

"Looks like you're stuck in here with me for the time being," Ozai snapped. "So stop banging on the door."

Katara just shot him a disgusted look and sat in the furthest corner of the cell. For a while, Ozai just watched her, his amber eyes never leaving her slender frame, but after a while, he got bored.

"This is insufferable," he muttered.

Katara was on her feet in an instant. "Excuse me? I don't see why you're complaining, especially after…"

"To be locked in a cell is bad enough," Ozai retorted. "But to be locked in it with a _peasant_, is degrading."

Katara groaned. "I've put up with this peasant thing long enough. Not everyone can be royalty like you, but that doesn't mean they're peasants either."

"You have a lot to learn," Ozai said, scornfully and Katara frowned. If he kept this up, she wouldn't be held responsible for what happened.

"So tell me," the former Firelord said, letting his gaze flicker from the wall of his cell back to Katara. "What happened to my daughter?"

"You think I know?" Katara replied. "I'm not her baby sitter. She's locked away, if that's any consolation to you, but I don't keep track of what she's doing."

"Ah, so the Avatar does then?"

"Aang's got better things to do than to watch Azula. Besides, the way she is, she might…"

"Stop," he roared. "All you peasants do is lie."

"What?"

"Azula doesn't have any condition. She's perfectly normal."

"I never said…"

"You implied that there was something wrong with her."

"I just meant…"

"I don't care," Ozai hissed. "What you meant means nothing to me. You're wrong. I might not have my firebending, but I'm still the Phoenix King. Azula will come for me and in spite of all the lies you've heard, she'll set me free. And when the whole world will see, she's really not deranged."

Katara didn't respond. Her eyes were fixed on the tiny window on the door. She could still make out the commotion in the passageway and though she couldn't see everything, she knew it was serious because every five minutes, one more guard would desert his post and join in on all the uproar. Ozai, for his part, just pretended to be amused by the disturbance though in reality, he was irritated that out of all the people he had to be locked in with, it couldn't be someone who was loyal to him.

"It's probably some prisoner attempting to escape," he said.

"Why haven't you tried yet?" Katara wondered, glancing at him. "You've certainly got enough people to help you."

He shrugged. "There's no need," he answered, calmly. "I'll be out in a short while and soon, I'll reclaim my place as the Phoenix King."

"Zuko's the Firelord," Katara said. "And the Earth King has regained control over the Earth Kingdom. You can't just expect everybody to give up their throne for you."

"I don't," Ozai said. "I might not be a firebender anymore, but Azula is, and she's very capable."

Katara grimaced. "Of course she is."

"And we won't attack the Earth Kingdom first. It's such a large continent we'd need lots of soldiers and ships. I was aiming for something a little bit smaller, something like the Southern Water Tribe," he purred, his amber eyes gleaming.

"You won't get out," Katara said, resolutely. "And even if you do, I won't let you attack my tribe. And you can't expect to get it just like that. A lot has changed since the last time you attacked my people."

"I don't think so," he replied, coolly. "I don't think those waterbenders stand a chance."

"What waterbenders?" Katara asked, bitterly. "Thanks to you, I'm the last one."

"How dare you accuse me of causing the destruction of your people."

"You, your father, your grandfather…you're all the same," Katara muttered. "All you care about is war."

Ozai leaned forward and gave an eerie smile. "There are certain things I wouldn't expect your simple mind to comprehend. Waging war is one of them. We haven't done anything wrong, really. We just took control of people too weak to rule themselves."

"Is that what you tell yourself?" Katara wondered, laughing darkly. "I'm sure you think the destruction of all those villages, the imprisonment and deaths of all those people weren't your fault either."

"They weren't really," Ozai said, leaning back and folding his arms across his chest. "If they had surrendered peacefully, there wouldn't have been any need for violence."

"Of course."

Ozai rolled his eyes. "You're making a big deal out of nothing, little girl."

"You would think so. You know, thanks to your father, my mother is dead."

"I will not be blamed for your mother's death; I had no part in it. Blame it on my father if you must."

"You're just as bad." Katara pointed out.

"You're just like Zuko," Ozai muttered. "Why must you people always make a big deal about mothers?"

"Because it's something every kid should have growing up and something you deprived your kids of."

"Given the circumstances, I think its best that things remain the way they are. They never needed and still don't need a mother."

"Oh, of course not," the waterbender replied, sarcastically. "Just look at the way Azula turned out."

Ozai was about to reply, but Katara had spotted a guard passing the cell and managed to get his attention.

"Has he been bothering you, Miss?" the guard demanded as he unlocked the door. "Dreadfully sorry. We would have let you out sooner, but a prisoner tried to make an escape attempt and…"

"It's fine," Katara lied.

"We had quite an interesting conversation," Ozai sneered. "The Water Tribe peasant suddenly thinks she's so powerful. If I had my firebending…"

"Shut up," Katara said, walking away.

"How dare you! Come back here," Ozai thundered, watching her retreating figure. Katara just smiled to herself and disappeared from sight

She was still smiling when she reached Zuko's palace and Toph, Suki, and Aang turned to stare at her. She didn't bother to explain why she was so happy until Mai asked and when Katara proceeded to tell them, the others gaped at her.

"You did _what_?" Sokka asked.

"I told Ozai to shut up and it felt good."

Toph was laughing so hard, Suki put some distance between them.

"Why would you do that?" Sokka cried. "What if he escapes and attacks me?"

"Why would he attack you?" Suki demanded. "You're not much of a challenge."

"He might go after me since I'm related to Katara."

Toph started laughing even harder.

"I still can't believe you even went to see him," Zuko said. "You two actually let her go?"

Aang and Sokka exchanged a glance.

"What do you mean _let her go_?" Aang wondered.

"Were we not supposed to let her go?" Sokka asked.

Zuko shrugged. "I just thought since you knew she'd be helping my father…"

"No one knew," Katara said. "Even I didn't know I was going to see him. I was just told that a prisoner needed to be healed before he infected the entire prison."

"He actually spoke to you?" Zuko asked quietly.

Katara nodded. "I was accidently locked in with him. He's not a pleasant person."

"Well, I'm glad you figured that out," Sokka said.

Katara just glared at him. "I meant to talk to. He said he wasn't to blame for the war and that I should blame Firelord Sozin."

"What kind of idiot is he?" Toph demanded. "How can he say he's not responsible after everything he did?"

"My father's not the type to apologize for things or take responsibility for the consequences. He probably still thinks that he was just helping everyone by taking over the world and ruling the weaker people," Zuko explained.

"Actually, that's what he said," Katara replied. "And we spoke about your mother."

"My mother?" Zuko repeated, dumbstruck. He just stared at her. "Did he…?"

Katara shook her head. "No, I'm sorry. He didn't say anything about where she might be."

"Oh." Zuko just sighed. He knew better than to expect much from Ozai. Ozai, after all, had completely given up on him and consequently wouldn't give him any information. But Zuko still wanted to try. If there was the slightest chance that Ursa was alive, Zuko wanted to find her.

"Maybe it's pointless to ask Ozai about your mother," Aang said. "You've told me plenty of times that your father can be stubborn, so why waste your time asking him information he'll never give. You should just look for her."

"I have," Zuko pointed out. "But it's a huge world. It'll take me forever to search everywhere."

"We can help," Suki offered. "And what about asking General Iroh to talk to the other members of the Order of the White Lotus? I'm sure some of the members can help."

"Yeah. If you have a lot of people helping you, it shouldn't take as long," Sokka pointed out.

"I guess," Zuko conceded. "But what if we _do_ find her? What if the people don't want a fallen queen returning?"

"Your mother isn't associated with your father, is she?" Mai asked.

"What do you mean?"

"Well other than Ozai, no one's ever claimed that Firelady Ursa's done anything bad. It was always Ozai who said bad things about your mother, but I've never heard any of the Fire Nation aristocrats say anything about it."

"I guess not," Zuko admitted.

"You shouldn't waste your time worrying about Ozai," Katara said. "He's a lost cause. Even I know that and I'm usually all for trying to help people. Ozai's beyond help I think."

Zuko gave a small smile. "Yeah, I guess he is."

"That's the sad part," Suki said, gazing wistfully at the horizon. The prison was no more than a dot lost amid a sea of buildings. "We're always taught that there's good in everyone. It's too bad Ozai never found it in him."

Zuko shrugged. "He's fallen so low, I'm beginning to wonder if there was _any_ good in him at all."

"I guess we'll never really know."

* * *

_Um...I don't really know where this oneshot came from. According to the ATLA crew, Katara was the only one from Team Avatar who hadn't met Ozai, so I started wondering what it would be like if she had. I don't think I did this topic any justice, but I'm too tired to change it right now, so maybe when I get a better idea, I might update it. In the meantime, reviews are greatly appreciated and thank you to everyone who reviewed. You're all terrific. I never expected to get this many reviews (I was aiming for at least 5 reviews ^_^) and it's nice to know my stories are entertaining (or at most readable). Thanks again and sorry for such a long wait between updates :)_

_~ Cassie_

_By the way, if anyone has suggestions for oneshots, feel free to PM me or email me. I can't guarantee I'll get to write them (or do any justice to them if I end up writing them), but if I have free time and I'm not working on anything, I'll certainly try. :)_


	31. Visualize

_Disclaimer: I don't own ATLA._

* * *

**XXXI. Visualize**

"_Close your eyes and visualise._"

~ Delta Goodrem, Visualise

"Hey Katara, I have a question."

Katara looked up from the laundry and turned to Toph.

"What is it?" She asked, wringing the last of the water from a pair of socks and wiping her hands clean.

Toph plucked a blade of grass from the riverbank and idly turned it around her fingers. "Never mind. You'll think it's stupid."

"I won't," Katara promised. "Really."

"Well…what does water look like?"

Katara glanced at the river beside her. "Well, um…it's…"

Toph chuckled. "I know it's a liquid and it's cool, but what exactly does it look like?"

"It's clear but it looks blue most of the time."

"Oh," Toph said, plucking a few more blades of grass from the riverbank. For a while, she didn't say anything, so Katara went back to the laundry, bending river water into the clothes and scrubbing them with soap before rinsing them in the river once again. She managed to wash another pair of socks before Toph spoke again.

"Katara, what does blue look like?"

"I thought you could 'see' everything through your vibrations," Katara said, taken aback.

Toph laughed. "I'm blind, Katara. I can't see anything. I can just feel things through the vibrations they give off. It's like forming an outline of something. I can't actually see any colors."

"Well, it's hard to explain if you've never seen it. It's sort of a dark color."

"Like black?"

"It's closer to black than a color like yellow but it's not black."

"Oh. I know the colors, but when people say it's dark, I just think of black. All dark colors are just black to me, because I have no way of telling the difference."

"If you want to get technical, there are shades of blue that range from light blue that's close to white to dark blue that's really dark, almost black."

"What color is the sun?"

"Yellow."

Toph nodded. "Must be nice to see colors," she said, sighing wistfully.

"I thought you didn't mind not being able to see. You said…"

"Oh, I don't," the blind earthbender said nonchalantly. "But sometimes, I wish I could, just to see the things everyone sees. I've never seen water, the sun, or clouds. I've never seen any animals or people either, really. I can just sense things, you know."

Katara nodded. She couldn't imagine being blind, but Toph made it look so easy. Then again, Toph was an earthbender and her skills allowed her to at least sense things. Katara was sure that if she was blind, she wouldn't even have that luxury of sensing vibrations.

"Katara, what do you look like?"

"Huh?" Katara asked, blinking stupidly at the blind girl looking calmly at her.

Toph started laughing again. "What's wrong, Sugar Queen? Describe yourself."

"Why would you want me to do that? Don't you already know who I am? I mean, you can sense my vibrations."

Toph shrugged. "It's not the same as seeing. I was just curious."

"I'm taller than you," the waterbender said.

"I think everyone is," Toph said, rolling her eyes.

"I have blue eyes," Katara said. "And long brown hair,"

"Curly or straight?" Toph asked.

"In between," Katara replied, feeling slightly strange and wondering what brought all this on. "It's actually sort of wavy since I braid it a lot."

"What does Sokka look like?"

"He looks like me, but he's taller and his hair is shorter, a lot shorter, actually."

"And Suki?"

"She's about my height," Katara explained. "She's got short brown hair and she's got blue green eyes."

"She sounds almost like you," Toph said.

Katara smiled. "I guess so, but her skin color is lighter."

"What about Zuko and Mai?"

"They're paler than the rest of us and they have black hair and amber eyes."

Toph nodded as if she understood, but Katara wondered if she was really keeping track of any of the information she as relating.

"What about Mr. Avatar over there? What does he look like?" Toph demanded, gesturing to Aang further down the riverbank. The airbender was supposed to be giving Appa a bath, but it was clear that neither the sky bison nor the airbender really want to do much of anything.

"He's got grey eyes and black hair, but he usually shaves it off."

"Oh," Toph repeated. She took a deep breath before continuing. "What…what do I look like?"

Katara met her gaze before replying. "Well, you've got black hair and light green eyes. You're shorter than most of us. You kind of look like you're mom, but…"

"When have you met my mother?" Toph asked, interrupting.

"This first time we met you, remember? When Aang was trying to find an earthbending teacher."

"Oh yeah. I forgot about that. Do I really look like her?"

"Yeah, you kind of do."

"My mom's supposed to be really pretty. Or at least that's what I've heard."

"She is and you are too," Katara assured her.

"You think so?"

The waterbender nodded.

"You don't have to lie, Katara. I don't really care if I'm not. Like I said before, I'm not looking for anyone's approval."

"Well, you're the one who has the lie detecting sense thing, so you should know if I'm lying or not," Katara pointed out. "So you tell me whether I am or not."

Toph smiled. "Unless you've suddenly become like Azula and become really good at lying, I don't think you are lying."

"Good, because I wasn't."

Toph just gave her friend another smile and the two girls lapsed into silence once again. Katara wanted to know what prompted Toph to ask all these questions, but she had a feeling that the earthbender would tell her eventually.

"Does being blind ever bother you?" Katara asked, quietly.

"Not really," Toph admitted. "It's better than not being able to hear or not being able to speak, but sometimes, I wish I could see just to know what certain things and certain people look like."

"I'm sure if you try hard enough you can imagine what we all look like."

Toph grinned. "Yeah, but if you asked me to draw what I imagined, I think it would come out worse than one of Sokka's drawings."

"Who knows?" Katara said. "But I guess being blind isn't all that bad. At least, that's what I've learned from you. You make it look so easy."

"It is easy," Toph said. "I'm really not that different from the rest of you."

"I know," Katara chuckled. "Why do you think we always argued after you joined the group?"

"Hey, Katara?"

"Yeah?"

"I don't know if I thanked you or the others for this, but thanks for treating me like a person and not just some helpless blind girl."

Katara just grinned. "What are friends for?"


	32. Limitless

_Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender._

* * *

**XXXII. Limitless**

_Trip over love, you can get up. Fall in love and you fall forever. _

~ Unknown

The thin wisps of clouds floated a few feet below them and Katara let out a sigh as she watched them drift past her.

"Haven't you ever wished you could fly?" she asked, gazing at Aang and momentarily forgetting who she spoke to.

He gazed back at her and she laughed.

"Never mind. That was a stupid question."

"Have you ever wished you could fly?" the airbender wondered.

"Sometimes. It seems like so much fun and you make it look easy."

"That's because it comes naturally to most airbenders and it _is _fun," he said. "You should try it."

Katara gave a dull laugh. "Yeah right. I'll fly the day you eat meat."

Aang shrugged. "You've done it once before, at the Northern Air Temple, remember?"

Katara nodded, though she wasn't sure if piloting a glider in zigzags and encountering bugs she didn't even know existed at such high altitudes, counted. It had been fun though, even if it wasn't the same as what Aang did.

"It was fun until I swallowed that bug," she said, shuddering as the memory flashed through her mind. Spirits, it had tasted awful. She had sworn to herself she wouldn't eat for a week after that, but she had never kept that promise. And after she had left the Northern Air Temple, she had promised herself that she would never try flying again, but after Aang kept trying to persuade her to try it, she caved in and broke that promise as well.

Sokka helped Katara build a glider similar to the one she had used before and it took her a while to get the hang of it, but after a few days of practicing Katara was able to fly just like the inhabitants of the Northern Air Temple had. Sokka had taken it upon himself to build another four gliders for Suki, Zuko, Mai and Toph, but redesigned Toph's so it suited him, when he remembered that she was truly blind when her feet weren't touching ground. As soon as all the gliders were complete, he took it upon himself to push the others off a cliff and have Aang teach them how to glide.

Much to Aang and Sokka's surprise, the others enjoyed it, even if they were mad at Sokka for forcing them to try it. Even Mai, who pretended to be indifferent about the whole situation, actually enjoyed it.

"This is so much fun," Sokka said, gliding past Zuko and Aang. "I can't believe I didn't try this sooner."

"I can't believe he actually got us to do this," Zuko muttered.

"It's not that bad, is it?" Aang asked.

Zuko shook his head. "No. You know, if I had thought of building a glider back when I was chasing you guys, fighting you would have been a lot easier."

"You lost to us plenty of times when we fought on land. What makes you think you'd win a fight against me in the air?" Aang asked, smirking.

"In my defense, I was stupider then," Zuko pointed out. "I never thought things through. I probably wouldn't even have thought about stealing a war balloon from my dad and using it to track you."

"But you _did_," Aang said. "You followed us to the Western Air Temple, remember?"

"I meant before I decided to turn against my father."

"Oh. Either way, you still wouldn't have won. Air is my element."

Zuko rolled his eyes. "You're the Avatar; they're all your elements."

"True," the airbender conceded. "But I'm not as good with earth and fire as I am with air and water."

Zuko smirked. "That's because Katara was such a good teacher, right?"

"Better than you," Aang replied, grinning.

"You're lucky you're the Avatar," Zuko said, gliding past him and pretending to be offended. "I wouldn't have tolerated that coming from anyone else."

Aang was about to say something, but a sudden gust of wind had Sokka's glider spiraling out of control. Before Aang even had time to register what was going on, Sokka had crashed into Zuko and Mai and the two had landed on a ledge lower down along the cliff side. The warrior was desperately trying to regain control of his glider but only succeeded in colliding with Suki and sent her spiraling. She managed to regain control but crashed into Toph who was standing on the cliff and listening to all the commotion.

"Hey Aang, I think I need help," Sokka cried as he struggled with the contraption he had built. "I can't…" Another gust of wind cut him off and sent him reeling towards the ledge where Suki had landed, but not before he collided with Katara. The waterbender had anticipated the collision and had instinctively used her hands to shield herself, letting go of her glider. By the time she had realized what she had done, it was too late; she was already falling.

When Katara had been a little girl, she had nightmares of falling like this. The thought used to terrify her, but now that she was actually experiencing it, she was a lot calmer. Her mind seemed to process things at a faster rate and she was suddenly able to realize something very important: just as she had once been scared of falling with no one to catch her, she had been scared of falling in love.

Katara wanted to laugh, but couldn't seem to get the breath out of her lungs to do so. Only she would compare her love life to falling down while she was spiraling to her death. She didn't see her life flash before her eyes or anything like that. She just wished she hadn't let Aang talk her into trying to fly again.

The ground suddenly seemed a lot closer than it had previously and Katara braced herself for the impact but Aang caught her long before she hit the ground.

"Why would you let go of the glider when you're in midair?" he demanded.

Katara gave a weak laugh. "Reflex reaction. Sorry."

"Hey Twinkletoes, I think Sokka needs help," Toph said dully, after Aang and Katara had landed. Katara just glanced at her brother who was gliding aimlessly in whichever direction the wind took him. It took Aang a good ten minutes to help Sokka, but in the end, Sokka somehow managed to land in one piece with his glider intact. By the time he had landed, Mai and Zuko had joined the others.

"I don't think I'll try that again anytime soon," Sokka said, smiling sheepishly as he and the others trudged back to the house.

"Me neither," Katara said. "The flying part was fun; falling and nearly hitting the ground was actually really scary."

"I thought you liked doing dangerous things," Aang teased.

Katara grinned. "Once in a while." She said, watching the others disband. "But I've done enough dangerous and scary things to last a lifetime."

"Like what?"

"Like running that Fire Navy way back when the war was still going on, fighting Azula, falling in love, learning bloodbending from Hama, trying to invade the Fire Nation, fighting Ozai," she said, ticking off the list on her fingers.

"You thought falling in love was scary and dangerous?" Aang asked.

"Well, yeah," Katara said, fiddling with a strand of her hair. "I used to be afraid of it."

"Why?"

"A number of reasons I guess. I didn't know if you even liked me. I know it's not true now, but back then, I was so unsure. And it seemed like falling in love was going to cause more problems than it solved. I've seen what war has done to people in love, so I just didn't want the same thing to happen to me. Kind of stupid, right?"

"No, not really," Aang replied. "It makes sense."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Besides, I think everyone thinks like that a first. The monks always used to say love was a journey, a little scary at first, but one well worth all the pain and tears. They also used to say it was limitless, like a circle."

Katara smiled. There was some truth to that. Love was limitless; it had no beginning and no end. It was immeasurable and inexhaustible. So then why exactly had she been so nervous and afraid about falling in love? She knew the answer, without even thinking about it.

"I think that was the real reason I was afraid of it," she said. "It's limitless. I didn't want to be in love forever and find out it was unrequited."

"Well, you know it's not unrequited," he replied, smiling.

Katara smiled wider. If love really was like a never ending circle, like the monks had claimed, then she and Aang were stuck in it together. And the best thing was that neither one of them ever wanted to get out.

* * *

_Thank you for all the wonderful reviews!_

_~ Cassie_


	33. The Most Dangerous Game

_It's amazing what you can find on your hard drive. This is one of the first oneshots I ever wrote. I wonder if it will make any sense..._

_Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender._

* * *

**XXXIII. The Most Dangerous Game**

_Love is a sweet tyranny, because the lover endureth his torments willingly._

~ Proverb

Katara had heard plenty of rumors before, on how boys could be complete idiots when it came to talking to girls, or how they could completely mess things up, and how getting involved in a relationship with certain young men could be disastrous. So naturally, when several girls she ran into at the market tried to convince her that airbenders weren't really her type and that she'd probably have better luck and find a more suitable match in a waterbender, she wasn't too surprised. It wasn't as if she hadn't seen this sort of thing before; it happened all the time to Sokka and Suki. What she couldn't understand was how her brother and the Kyoshi Warrior put up with it. It was mildly insulting to think that the other girls thought she was stupid enough to listen to them and take their advice.

She didn't really mind that the village girls kept bugging her. She was used to ignoring them most of the time and going about her work. But when they started cornering her and talking to her about everyday subjects like the weather and work, she became suspicious. They really were nice girls, but she didn't really trust them. She knew well enough that girls only acted _that_ nice when they wanted something. So, again, she wasn't the least bit surprised when one afternoon the village girls dragged her to a park for a picnic and a little "girl talk."

"We've been meaning to talk to you for the longest time," one girl said, motioning to an empty seat beside her where the waterbender was to sit. "It's been_ so_ long." Katara resisted the urge to roll her eyes and sat down wordlessly.

"Girls, isn't that dress simply _gorgeous_," another asked, pointing to Katara's dress. The other girls nodded in unison and Katara just raised an eyebrow. She knew that they were fully aware that the so called dress she was wearing was what she wore every day. They were just work clothes.

"The design is simply stunning."

"And the fabric is unique."

"I'd _die_ to have a dress like that."

"Girls," the waterbender said, adopting the same cheerful tone that all the village girls had. "We all know you didn't bring me here to talk about my work clothes, so what is it you want?"

One of the girls giggled. "Oh Katara, you're _so_ funny. Of course that's why we brought you here."

"Then I'm leaving," she said, resolutely. "I've got other things to do."

"Wait," another girl cried. "We're just here to warn you."

"About what?" Katara demanded.

"Men," they chorused and Katara buried her face in her hands.

I should have known, the waterbender thought.

"You should be careful, Katara. Men can be real dangerous. Especially, the nice ones."

"And what makes you say that?" Katara asked, facing the girl who sat next to her.

"Let's just say I know from experience. Men aren't to be trusted. You'd better be careful of the Avatar."

Katara just blinked at her and burst out laughing.

"You should listen to her," a different girl cried. "It's true. It's always the nice ones that are the most dangerous."

"The Avatar could easily…"

"Could easily what?" Katara wanted to know, wiping away a few tears and suppressing her laughter.

"He could easily hurt you."

"That's ridiculous."

The girl shrugged. "It's true all the same."

"You're all insane," Katara laughed. "Aang wouldn't do that."

"You're playing a very dangerous game, Katara," someone said, solemnly. "Be careful or you could get hurt." Katara only laughed harder and the girls spent the next hour trying to convince the waterbender that a certain Avatar was too dangerous for her and completely incompatible with her. They tried to convince her that staying the way she was, was taking a huge risk and that she'd probably have better luck with someone else. They tried to tell her all sorts of things, but the more they told her, the harder she laughed and the more they tried to convince her, the more she told them she hadn't heard anything so ridiculous.

By the time she had escaped the circle of girls and returned home it was evening and Katara had a slight headache from laughing so much. Just the mere thought of the conversation brought a smile to her face that threatened to send her into fits of laughter. She had heard plenty of crazy things, but this was by far the craziest thing she had heard yet. She shook her head and made her way inside the house.

The house was mostly silent and mostly empty except for Aang trying (unsuccessfully) to piece a broken vase back together. Katara took one look at him and burst out laughing. She couldn't help it. The more she remembered from her conversation with the other girls, the more absurd their theory seemed.

"What's so funny?" the airbender demanded, looking at her with an expression of confusion and concern.

"I had the strangest conversation with some of the village girls," Katara admitted. "It's so absurd, it's hilarious. The village girls seem to think you're dangerous and wanted to warn me."

"Of what?"

"Irresistible Avatars who love messing with unsuspecting girls," she choked out before descending into another fit of laughter. "Isn't it ridiculous?"

"Not the first part," Aang joked. "I am irresistible."

"And here I thought you were the modest one," Katara shot back. "I guess they were right after all."

"Hardly."

"Oh, there's more," Katara said. "Apparently, I'm playing a very dangerous game. I've been told that airbenders are really skilled at toying with a girl's emotions and good at using a girl's weakness against her."

"About as skilled as earthbenders practicing waterbending," he replied. "Who told you all that nonsense?"

"The village girls. I've also been told that airbenders can be quite skilled at getting what they want. Is it true?"

"It depends on what they're after," Aang replied smiling, and Katara couldn't tell if he was responding truthfully or if was teasing her.

"So then the others things I heard were true?" she teased, taking a seat across from him.

"No," he chuckled. "But what if they were?"

Katara's eyes were twinkling. "We both know you wouldn't do things like that."

"You're right," he replied. "But if I was everything those girls said I'd be, then what?"

"You mean a dangerous nice man, who can't be trusted, who'd probably torture me or drive me insane?" Katara said. Aang nodded. "Well, I'd say their all idiots, because it's not torture if you submit to it willingly."

"I don't torture you," Aang pointed out, trying not to laugh.

"You wouldn't think so," the waterbender muttered, thinking of all the things he had done to her. Sometimes just waiting to see him, especially after he'd been gone the whole day, had been torturous. And when he had pointedly ignored her or disappeared just to surprise her later, she had nearly been driven insane.

"And since when are you the type to submit to anything willingly?"

"I'll tell you a little secret Mr. Clueless Avatar," Katara said, her cerulean eyes sparkling brightly. "When a girl's in love, she'll willingly endure all manners of torture because to that crazy love struck girl, the so-called torture is nothing. And if you are everything those girls said you'd be, then, don't you think it's a little too late for me to escape or do anything about it?"

"Maybe. But I think you're right; everything they said is crazy and not true."

"I know," she consented. "But I have to admit, they were right when they said I was playing a dangerous game. Love is a dangerous game, but I think I'm in it far too deep to get out."

"What happened to willingly enduring my torments?"

"I never said I wanted to get out of love, did I? And I like it when you torture me."

"I never do." Aang said. "At least not intentionally."

Katara grinned. "That's the point and that's why I love you."

* * *

_Um...I'm almost afraid to ask if it _did _make any sense._

_~ Cassie_


	34. Serendipity

_Another oneshot I found sitting on my computer. Enjoy! :)_

_Disclaimer: I don't own ATLA._

* * *

**XXXIV. Serendipity**

_Dear fortune and love, I heard you favor the good_

_And if that's true then we'll always be safe_

_Because you're the best thing I've ever known._

~ Delta Goodrem, Fortune and Love

Hakoda knew enough about war to know that it had a subtle way of changing people. He had seen it with his own men, how tired and drawn they looked, how they no longer joked or talked about pleasant things until they returned home safely. He also knew that his children had seen more than he had, that they had fought some tough battles, gone through some rough times, so when they had returned to the South Pole, he had been slightly worried that they might have changed in the short while since he had seen them at Zuko's coronation. But the instant Sokka and Katara set foot in the South Pole, Hakoda knew that wasn't the case.

It had now been a week since his children had returned and in that time, Hakoda couldn't once remember seeing either Sokka or Katara look sad. Sokka was more optimistic than he had ever been, so much so that the Water Tribe chief was beginning to wonder if the lanky warrior really was his son. Sokka was much more relaxed and easygoing with the little members of his small army, especially since there wasn't much chance of a Fire Navy attack on the newly rebuilt town. And Katara was a lot happier than she'd been the last few times Hakoda had seen her. She no longer smiled those fake smiles she used to give after Kya passed away. When she smiled now, Hakoda could have sworn her smile could light the room. When she laughed, it was no longer forced and sometimes just the mere sight of Sokka and Katara made Hakoda want to laugh. He was immensely thankful that his children hadn't become like some of the war veterans he had seen.

The chief sighed to himself and gazed out at the vast expanse of water before him. If only Kya was here, he thought, turning his gaze upward to the heavens where he knew his wife was watching down on them from. He had long ago accepted that bitter truth that Kya was lost forever, that he would never see her beautiful smile or hear her sweet laugh, but it didn't do anything to erase the heartache. It was a dull ache now, but it was there all the same. He wished his wife could see their children and how beautifully they had grown up. He knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that she'd be the proudest mother in the whole world.

He sighed again and let his mind wander to much pleasanter things and thus, a certain waterbender found him.

"Want some company?" Katara asked, coming to stand beside him.

"Shouldn't you and Aang be helping Pakku with the waterbenders?" he wondered.

Katara laughed. "I think Master Pakku can handle them without us. Besides, I think those waterbenders are more interested in seeing Aang and Suki than me and Sokka."

Hakoda chuckled. "They've never been away from here before, so meeting new people must be exciting for them."

"Maybe," Katara said. For a while, neither father nor daughter said anything, but after a few minutes of silence passed between them, Katara spoke up.

"Isn't this almost surreal?" she asked, following her father's gaze to where a Water Tribe boat was fishing in the open sea. "We always dreamed about the war ending, but now that it's over, it seems so strange."

"It does," Hakoda agreed. "But I'm just thankful that we all made it out alive and in one piece."

"You didn't think we would?"

Her father shrugged. "There were times when I was worried sick. I'd heard about a couple of your adventures from travelers and let's just say some of them didn't sound too pleasant."

"Don't worry, Dad. From now on, I think any adventure Sokka and I have is guaranteed to be pleasanter than the stories you heard," Katara reassured him.

Hakoda laughed. "I should hope so. But you've all done so much. Don't you want to rest and take a break?"

Katara smiled. "Airbenders don't rest, Dad. Aang, and Zuko for that matter, are going to need all the help they can get. Don't worry about us; we'll be fine."

Hakoda sighed and Katara laughed.

"We're not leaving for a while," she pointed out.

"Don't you want to stay?" her father asked, smiling.

Katara's eyes suddenly had a faraway look. "I don't think I can," she said, softly. And although she hadn't explained her reasons, Hakoda understood them perfectly.

"I never did get you or Sokka anything, did I?" the chief asked, suddenly.

"For what?"

"For helping our tribe and the world."

"That's okay, Dad. You don't have to and besides, I've got everything I want."

"You do?" Hakoda asked, not the least bit surprised by his daughter's answer.

The waterbender nodded, smiling. "Of course. I'm very lucky."

* * *

"Well, Katara," Kanna said, leaning back in her chair. "Now that your travels are over, what are you going to do?"

"Who says they're over?" her granddaughter demanded.

"Well, I thought since you and your friends managed to defeat Ozai, you and Sokka would stay here."

"Do you want us to?" Katara asked.

Kanna laughed. "You don't have to stay here just for me, my waterbender. I just assumed that you'd stay, but now I see why you're so eager to continue travelling."

"You do?" Katara asked.

Kanna nodded, a smile on her face. "You're very lucky, Katara," she said. Katara smiled though she was slightly confused and gave her grandmother a kiss before leaving the house. As she ducked out the door, Katara could have sworn she heard Kanna chuckling to herself and say, "That girl has good taste in boys."

Aang found Katara in a pensive mood that evening, as he joined her by the piers. The waves lapped gently against the frozen shore and the tranquil waters matched the peaceful expression on Katara's face.

"You're awfully quiet," Aang said when five minutes had elapsed and Katara hadn't bothered to say anything.

"I was just thinking how lucky I am to have such great family and friends," the waterbender replied.

"I don't think any of that has to do with luck," Aang said. "Luck is left up to chance."

Katara raised an eyebrow. "So meeting you wasn't chance?"

The airbender shook his head. "I don't think so."

"Chance or not," Katara said. "I'm glad things happened the way they did. If they didn't, I wouldn't be lucky."

Aang laughed. "You keep saying that but what exactly makes you so lucky?"

"You really want to know?" Katara asked, grinning.

Aang nodded.

"You," she replied. "You're the best thing that's happened to me."

Ever since the war ended, it really seems like everything is perfect."

"Not in the Fire Nation," Aang pointed out, smiling."But it really does seem that way."

She nodded. "I'm so happy, I don't think I'd ever want any anything again."

* * *

_Too sappy? Maybe I'll go back and fix it later. On a random side note, is anyone else annoyed by those new icons at the top of the page? They mess up my formatting :( Oh well. Thanks for all the wonderful reviews I've gotten so far. You're all terrific. _^-^

_~ Cassie_


	35. A Mark Upon the World

_Just a oneshot I wrote for my sister's birthday. Happy Birthday, sis! _

_Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar:TLA._

* * *

**XXXV. A Mark Upon the World**

_"To the world you may be just one person, but to one person you may be the world."_

~Brandi Snyder

Long ago, years before Hakoda had left to fight in the war and before Kya passed away, Katara used to dream. She dreamt of being a hero with people praising her as she passed by, of doing something so great, future generations knew all about her adventures and all the deeds she had done. As a little five year old girl, she had proudly told her family, that one day, she would make her mark upon the world.

But then the war came to the Southern Water Tribe and she saw what being a hero really meant, that heroes only got that praise and adoration after they had been through so much and she decided she would make her mark upon the world without being a hero. She didn't really want to be a hero if it meant losing so much just to be viewed differently from an ordinary person.

Years later, after the war had ended, Katara denied being a hero despite what people said, because, really, it had been Aang who had done most of the work. She realized that it didn't take a hero to make a mark upon the world and even if her mark went unnoticed, it didn't really matter to her. So when she and Sokka helped Zuko and Aang with the restoration process after the war, she didn't really care if people had no idea who she was or what she was doing.

* * *

"I can't believe some people can be so ungrateful," Sokka said, shoving his hands deep into his pockets and watching a middle-aged couple complain about their newly rebuilt and refurnished house. "It's not like it took us an hour to build."

"Let it go, Sokka," Katara sighed, taking off her hood and letting the cold South Pole wind play with her hair. "It's their problem if they don't like it. We did what they asked."

"Do you know how much effort I put into building some of that furniture, how much effort we all put in? And all they can do is complain and say we could have built things better."

"So what?"

"So what?" the warrior echoed. "Katara, you and Aang worked day and night to build the house as quickly as you could so that they had a decent place to live. The rest of us worked really hard to make their furniture. That house is ten times better now than it was before the war and all they can do is complain."

"It's really not that big of a deal, Sokka. Maybe Aang and I can fix it so they like it better."

"You can't do that," Sokka cried. "You _shouldn't_ do that. If you do, everyone will want you to do things the way they like them done."

The waterbender shrugged. "So what? I don't mind helping people."

"You won't be helping them," he huffed. "They'd probably just take advantage of you. There is such a thing as being too nice, you know."

"You think I'm too nice?" Katara laughed. "Who was it who kept saying I'm one of the coldest people in the world?"

"I was just saving that poor guy's heart," Sokka said, defensively. "Everyone knows you don't like guys here."

"I don't really like the guys anywhere," she muttered.

"So you don't like Aang?" he teased.

"Oh, Sokka, you know what I mean," she cried, quickening her pace. Her brother chuckled and hurried to keep up with her.

"I know. I'm just saying that, sometimes, you can be too nice."

"What's wrong with being nice? You want me to be aloof like you?"

"No, and I am not aloof," he exclaimed. "Being nice is good but you have to be firm too. You can't let people walk all over you."

"When have I done that?" Katara demanded.

"When we stayed with Hama in the Fire Nation, didn't you say she killed a field of flowers and trees just to show you that plants had water?" Sokka asked. Katara nodded. "You didn't say anything about it or about what she was teaching you until it was too late."

"That doesn't count," Katara shot back. "Learning bloodbending was different. I had no choice."

"Exactly. Hama took advantage of you."

"Whatever," she said.

"I'm just saying you shouldn't let people take advantage of you," her brother said. "You have to be nice, but firm."

"Like you?" Katara mocked, smiling.

"Like Mom," Sokka said, a wistful expression crossing his face. The smile vanished from Katara's face. "She was really nice, but no one ever took advantage of her."

"I know," she replied, softly. "I'll never know how she did it."

Sokka sighed and stopped walking, letting his gaze rest on the blue waters of the ocean that sparkled in the sunlight. "Do you ever think people think about her?"

"We do," Katara pointed out.

"No, I meant other people."

"I'm sure they do. I don't remember much, but she must have done a lot for them."

"Why do you assume that?"

"Dad's the chief, genius. The chief's wife has things to do too, you know. She's not just a figurehead."

Sokka sighed. "I know. I miss her."

"We all do," Katara said.

"Do you remember that one time she convinced you I was really the Avatar?" Sokka asked, laughing.

"Yeah, but in my defense, I was three and easily gullible." Katara replied, laughing. "I remember you once told her that you were going to be the best waterbender in the tribe. Now look at you."

Sokka chuckled. "Yeah, that dream didn't really work out, but if I was a waterbender, I'd be way better than you."

"In your dreams, Sokka."

Sokka sighed again. "You know, they look like jewels," he said, pointing to the waves of water that glistened like sapphires in the sunlight. "Mom always liked jewels."

"Did she?" Katara wondered. She didn't remember her mother wearing that much jewelry at all.

Sokka nodded matter-of-factly. "Yeah, but she didn't wear much. I think she liked turquoise and emeralds the best, though I'm not too sure. I don't remember much."

"Me neither," his sister said, sadly.

Sokka fished for something in his pocket and handed it to Katara. "I found this the other day, when we were cleaning the house. Gran Gran said it belonged to Mom. I thought you might like it."

Katara looked at the small green jewel in her hand, but shook her head and handed it back to Sokka. "You keep it. Give it to Suki. She might like it."

"You don't want it?" he asked, clearly surprised. He didn't think she'd refuse something of Kya's.

"No, but Suki might like it. It suits her better than it suits me and anyways, I don't really like emeralds."

"I thought it was jade," Sokka said, inspecting it.

"Either way," Katara replied. "I don't like green jewels."

"Why not?"

"They remind me of the crystal catacombs in Ba Sing Se."

Sokka just gave Katara a puzzled look. "What are you talking about?"

"When Azula attacked us in catacombs at Ba Sing Se."

"Oh you mean when Aang almost…" Sokka left off noticing Katara's sad expression.

She nodded. "We were losing pretty badly after the Dai Li joined Azula. It just bothered me that there were really pretty stones that kept shining and sparkling while we were getting beaten and Aang almost died. It was like they were mocking us." She sighed and let out a short laugh. "I know it's really stupid, but ever since then, I've hated green gems."

"You're sure you don't hate them just because Aang doesn't like them?" Sokka teased.

Katara nodded. "Positive. I think Aang likes the color green anyway. I never did."

Sokka put the stone in his pocket. "Maybe I will give it to Suki. She might like it."

"I'm sure she will," Katara said. "I think she'll appreciate it."

Sokka just smiled and the two lapsed into silence. For a while, brother and sister just stared at the ocean, lost in thought. It was a full ten minutes before Sokka broke the silence.

"You know," he said, laughing. "Do you remember that one time we both said we were going to be heroes and Mom and Dad just laughed?"

Katara grinned. "I remember. I think I told them I was going to be the greatest waterbender in the tribe."

"You're the _only_ waterbender in the tribe," Sokka laughed. "The others don't count because they moved here from the North." Katara smiled. "I also remember you telling them you'd make your mark on the world."

Katara shook her head, smiling. "I never tried after I said that."

"Well, you've got plenty of time now," Sokka said. "Do you think you'll try?"

"To make my mark on the world?" Katara asked, smiling. Sokka nodded. "I think I already have."

Aang was her world, and as long as he still loved her, she considered her mark as good as made.


	36. Missing

_I'm not too proud of this one, but I'm still posting it :)_

_Disclaimer: I don't own ATLA._

* * *

**XXXVI. Missing**

_Brothers and sisters are as close as hands and feet._

~ Vietnamese Proverb

Sometimes, Sokka felt like he was invisible. He didn't really mind it because it was so much easier to do things when people didn't notice him but he missed Katara. Ever since they had returned to the South Pole, she had been surrounded by girls and young men. They'd follow her from the house to Pakku's school, to the market, wherever she went. Sokka was positive he could count the days he spent with her on one hand.

He smiled to himself, because when they first returned, he had wished that he had his own little group of people following him around, but after seeing Katara at the end of the day, he was thankful that he didn't have a horde of villagers running after him. Katara looked so tired and most of her chores never got done because she spent so much time trying to evade the villagers.

"Maybe you should go help your mothers," he heard her say to a group of little girls who were following her. The little girls all sighed and ambled away and Katara sighed in relief. She spotted Sokka in the distance and waved to him. He waved back.

"Don't forget to come home early," she called. "Suki and Aang are coming."

"Oh, great," Sokka muttered. He was excited to see them, but that probably meant he had to go fishing and stop at the village to pick up some extra things for them. He spent a moment debating whether or not he should ask Katara to do the shopping since she was already in the village but decided he might as well as do it himself since she had her own work to do. Shoving his hands into his pockets, Sokka shuffled off towards the docks.

Despite the time, the docks were teeming with people and it took Sokka a while to find his little boat among the much larger vessels but within five minutes, he had cast off and a short while later, he left the Southern Water Tribe behind him and sailed out into the open sea where large schools of fish awaited him.

* * *

Suki had been impatiently waiting to see Sokka, so when Appa finally landed on the giant iceberg that Suki identified as the South Pole, she was ecstatic. She'd heard so much about the Southern Water Tribe from Sokka, Katara, Aang, and even Zuko. Occasionally, some traders would stop at Kyoshi on their way back from their travels and she'd hear stories about their encounters with the hospitable people of the Southern Water Tribe. The more she heard, the greater her desire to see the South Pole with her own eyes became. And now that she was finally there, she was thrilled.

Katara spotted Aang and Suki right away, though with Appa standing behind them (and Aang wearing his usual airbender outfit which presented a stark contrast to the Water Tribe's blue outfits) , they would have been hard to miss. She led them to the house and as soon as the two got in, Kanna and Hakoda were ready to greet them. It didn't take long for them to start asking questions either, and Katara shook her head, smiling, as she watched her father and grandmother. They must have spent hours talking, because Katara noticed it was nearing dinner time when her grandmother and her father excused themselves to take care of last minute preparations. They had been so busy talking, Katara had completely forgotten about Sokka and the food he was supposed to bring.

"Your brother isn't back yet, is he?" Kanna asked, setting the last of the plates on the dinner table.

Katara shook her head and glanced out the window. A thick sheet of snow was falling from the dull grey sky and the visibility had dropped so that it was hard to make out what was two feet in front of the house. Katara knew it would be a fool's errand to go look for Sokka in the storm, so she sat by the window and watched the snow fall, praying that her brother had found shelter somewhere.

The hours passed slowly and the others ended up skipping dinner to wait for Sokka. Hakoda had several things that needed to be taken care of, so he locked himself in his room while Kanna bustled about the kitchen preparing food for the next day. Katara just paced back and forth and Suki and Aang tried their best to distract her from worrying. But they knew Katara well enough to know that she wouldn't stop worrying until Sokka was back home, safe and sound.

"I'm sure Sokka's fine," Aang said for what seemed like the hundredth time. "He's not stupid enough to try and come home in a snow storm like this."

"You think so?" Katara added. Aang nodded and gave her a small smile, but Katara looked like she would burst into tears any second. She cast another worried glance out the window and watched the storm until Aang dragged her from her seat and made her sit at the table.

"Worrying about Sokka isn't going to bring him home," he pointed out. "He'll be fine."

"As crazy as Sokka is, he wouldn't try to walk back home in this blizzard," Suki reassured her. "He's probably at someone's house right now with a net full of fish, complaining about how this crazy storm won't let him come home and how you won't cook the fish and he won't get a chance to eat it."

Katara sighed. "You're probably right, but I can't help it. I'm still worried. Sometimes, Sokka gets these crazy ideas in his head and he might think he's two feet from the house when really he could be miles away."

Suki, who had been so impatient to see Sokka, now focused on just distracting Katara in any way possible. She could understand why the waterbender was so worried, but she knew worrying was pointless. So she and Aang spent the entire night trying to convince Katara that Sokka really was okay. By the time Katara fell asleep, it was past midnight and Suki and Aang were so tired, they fell asleep where they were.

They awoke to a blast of cold air blowing in through the open front door. The storm had stopped sometime ago and a new layer of snow sparkled in the light of the sun. Katara's sleeping bag was empty and her snow boots were gone, so it didn't take much for the two to guess she had slipped out to look for her brother. She must have been in a rush, because her parka and mittens were still hanging on the wall right where she had left them the night before. The Avatar and the Kyoshi Warrior just exchanged glances before bundling up and rushing out the front door to follow Katara. Aang loved everything about Katara, but sometimes, he found it a little irritating that she worried so much that she forgot all about herself.

"That girl is going to kill herself one of these days," Suki muttered, grabbing Katara's parka and mittens, and plowing through the snow towards the waterbender who was no more than a tiny speck in the distance.

Sokka was surprised when he thought he spied the house in the distance, but he was even more surprised when he saw something moving towards him. The glare from the sun prevented him from seeing what it was, he but saw a streak of blue before he felt Katara collide with him and embrace him in a hug.

"You're okay," she exclaimed.

Sokka couldn't manage a thank you. He just stared at her, taking in her appearance. "Katara, what are you think running around the South Pole in nothing but a sweater?" he demanded. "Are you insane?"

"I was worried," she said as Sokka fumbled with his mittens and handed them to her.

"Well, would it kill you to worry about yourself for once?" he cried.

Katara just frowned. "Fine. Next time there's a blizzard I'll just sit at home instead of staying up all night and you can freeze to death out here."

"You mean you were worried about me?" he asked, somewhat surprised. He knew it was like her to worry, but he didn't think he was something she'd lose sleep over.

She nodded and Sokka could have sworn she was holding back tears.

"I honestly didn't think you guys would notice I was gone." He admitted, sheepishly.

"What gave you that idea?" she asked.

Instead of elaborating, Sokka just took her hand and half dragged her back home.

"If Dad finds out about this, he's going to kill me," the warrior grumbled.

"Oh please, we both know I'm going to get in trouble," Katara said.

"Well, you kind of deserve it," Sokka said. "You're an idiot for running around dressed like that. Any sensible person would think twice before running around in below freezing temperatures with nothing but a sweater."

"It's not like I'm going to die or anything," Katara huffed as they neared the house. "I'm perfectly fine." At least, the waterbender thought she was until Suki found her and gave her a long lecture on how stupid her whole idea had been and how worried _she_ had been about Katara.

"I really thought your father would kill me the minute he found out you were gone," Suki said. "Please don't do that again."

Katara just rolled her eyes. "Whatever."

"I never thanked you, did I?" Sokka asked.

"For what?" Katara demanded.

"For worrying and taking the trouble to look for me. You really cared that much?"

"You're my brother, Sokka. Of course I care."

Sokka smiled. "Thanks, Katara." Suddenly, he wondered how he ever felt invisible with a sister like Katara around.

* * *

_Thanks for all the wonderful reviews!_

_~ Cassidy_


	37. Sleeping Beauty

_My longest oneshot yet! Based on a random idea I got one day. I think it's interesting, but whether or not everyone else does remains to be seen. Happy readings :)_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar._

* * *

**XXXVII. Sleeping Beauty**

_From this moment as long as I live  
I will love you, I promise you this.  
There is nothing I wouldn't give  
From this moment on_

~ Shania Twain, From This Moment On

Since the War had ended, Aang hadn't really found the need to stay up at night and think, but as sleep hadn't found him he sat up and just stared. The stars were fainter than usual owing to the multitude of clouds that floated across the sky, so he didn't bother to gaze at them. In any case, stargazing wasn't nearly as fun alone; he infinitely preferred watching the stars with Katara than watching them by himself. But Katara was fast asleep, curled up on the sleeping mat a few feet away from him, a peaceful expression on her face, so Aang just gazed at the landscape around him.

He couldn't really say what had prompted Zuko to propose a camping trip, but if he had to guess, he would put it down to the never-ending work the Firelord seemed to have and how he never got so much as a minute to enjoy the great outdoors. Honestly, Aang was grateful for the trip because since Zuko had become Firelord it really seemed like the only way to spend time together like they had before the war ended, was to do work. So when Zuko proposed a camping trip, Aang had been ecstatic.

Their campsite was in a secluded part of the Earth Kingdom, one of the many places Suki had discovered when travelling with the Kyoshi Warriors. It was far enough from a town that they could enjoy their trip without worrying about being disturbed by others, but close enough that, in the event of an emergency, help could easily be reached. It vaguely reminded Aang of the Air Temple; with several waterfalls, a stone shrine to some unmarked spirit, and ruins of an ancient building, it really seemed like this place had been a temple of sorts. But Aang had his suspicions. The scenery here was too distracting for meditation; if this place had been a temple, the young monk wondered how anyone could ever get anything done with such beautiful landscape all around. The Air Temples afforded stunning views of the landscape as well, but somehow, meditating there seemed possible. Here, Aang wasn't sure he'd get anything done. But he enjoyed the place all the same.

There was so much to do there, the young Avatar wasn't sure a week was long enough to spend there. Sokka had discovered a series of underground caves and had promptly declared that they should explore them. From the outside, the caves looked small but after a few hours of walking, Zuko had pointed out that the caves were probably too big to explore in a day so they moved on. Aang had discovered a lake fed by five waterfalls and though he hadn't told anyone yet, he was sure they would like it. At least, Katara was sure to like it, but being a waterbender, she loved anything to do with her element.

Aang turned his gaze from the scenery in front of him to the sleeping girl beside him. Katara was still smiling in her sleep and if he hadn't known she was asleep, he might have thought she was wide awake. He could only imagine what she was dreaming about. He sighed to himself. He wished he was asleep too, but unfortunately, he was denied that luxury.

From the corner of his eye, something caught his attention and Aang turned to look at the landscape again. He could have sworn he saw something before, but now, everything looked normal. The grasses of the rolling hills in the distance waved gently in the breeze and the treetops whispered unintelligibly. He was about to close his eyes in an attempt to get some sleep, when a hazy, indistinct figure appeared between the sparsely growing trees a few hundred feet away from him. Aang looked over his shoulder to where Toph's earth tent rose up from the ground, but he could still hear her snoring, which meant she, like him, hadn't sensed the figure approaching.

The silhouette drew closer and Aang suddenly realized that with its hazy, wavering form, it was more of a spirit than a human figure. So he waited calmly while the spirit materialized before him.

"Hello, Aang."

"Avatar Kuruk," the monk replied, genuinely surprised. "What's wrong?"

Kuruk, for the first time since Aang had met him, smiled. "I've come as a favor to Roku. He seems to think something's wrong since you haven't gotten a wink of sleep."

"Nothing's wrong," Aang replied. "Just insomnia, I guess."

Kuruk chuckled, surprising Aang even more. "I've told him, but the old man won't seem to listen."

Aang smiled. "Must be something we all have in common then."

Kuruk was about to respond, but a cool breeze blew from the trees and Katara shivered a bit, so Aang draped his unused blanket over her. When he turned to face Kuruk, the former Avatar had a dejected expression on his face as he gazed at the waterbender. Aang just had to glance at the expression on Kuruk's face to know he was thinking about Ummi.

"Sometimes," Kuruk said, abjectly. "I forget what she's like. You'd think that our love would be strong enough to override that, but these past few centuries have eroded at my memories. I was so in love with her, but we hadn't even been together that long. "

Aang felt like he should apologize, but he didn't know what to apologize for; he hadn't done anything, anyway.

Kuruk smiled wistfully. "It was the same for all of us, I suppose. Love at first sight."

It took Aang a moment to realize Kuruk was referring to him and the other Avatars. He didn't know about Kyoshi and the other previous Avatars, but based on what Roku and Kuruk had told him, he knew what the former Avatar had said applied to the three of them.

"What was Ummi like?" Aang wondered, hoping to draw some happier memories from the older man.

"Much like your waterbender," Kuruk replied, smiling wistfully. "But she was less adventurous." He knelt beside Katara as if to brush a strand of her hair away from her face, but recoiled when he realized he was nothing but a spirit. "She had such beautiful hair too. I think I was so crazy about her, I often dreamed of brushing her hair."

The airbender smiled at the thought of a love struck Kuruk. Was it just an Avatar thing, or did people generally act like he had around those they liked?

"She wasn't a bender, either," Kuruk said. "But she came from the Southern Water Tribe." Aang just smiled. He wondered if Katara knew, but considering that the Southern Tribe was closely knit, he supposed she had heard about it from someone since everyone seemed to know enough about everyone else and their ancestry.

"It's strange," Kuruk said, watching Katara. "Sometimes, I think she's so much like Ummi that she's Ummi's reincarnate, but then I see her with you and she's so different."

"I didn't know that people like Ummi were reincarnated. I thought it was just an Avatar thing."

Kuruk shrugged. "Well, nothing's been proven yet, but who knows? But it's a good thing your waterbender isn't Ummi's reincarnate."

"It is?" the airbender asked, tentatively.

Kuruk nodded. "Then we'd both be condemned."

"What makes you say that?"

Kuruk sighed. "I have nothing from my past life, Aang. No heroic battles fought to keep the world in balance, no story or legend to tell of how I defeated a despotic Firelord or anything like that. Just Ummi. If Katara really was Ummi, if it was certain that she was, I don't think I'd let you have her."

"You mean…?"

"Love makes a man do crazy things," Kuruk said. "I've spent centuries looking for her. If it was proven beyond a doubt that Katara was Ummi's reincarnate, the rational part of me would probably try and accept that and move on. But like I said, love makes a man do crazy things. It's a wonder I haven't used any of you yet. There were so many opportunities when I could have used Kyoshi or Roku, even you, to help me find Ummi and I probably would have if I had been desperate enough."

Aang just blinked at the former Avatar. He knew Kuruk had dedicated his time to finding his wife, but he never suspected that he had almost used Kyoshi, Roku, or even himself to do that. And suddenly, the airbender realized something. Kuruk said that if Katara had been Ummi's reincarnate, that they'd both be condemned, implying that Kuruk already thought he was.

"You don't think you're condemned, do you?" Aang asked the older man.

Kuruk smiled. "You're quite perceptive. It does seem that way."

"You think looking for Ummi means you're condemned?"

"I've been looking for her for ages and just when I think I've found her, I end up right back where I started. I think Koh's done a fairly good job of keeping her just out of my reach."

"But that doesn't mean you're condemned," Aang pointed out. "Just because you haven't found her yet doesn't mean it'll be like that for eternity. You have all the time in the world to look for her. Koh can't keep her forever."

"You underestimate him, Aang. Koh is quite clever."

"He is," the airbender conceded. "But he's bound to slip up sometime."

"Immortal spirits such as Koh don't _slip up_," Kuruk said.

"Maybe not, but you've been after him for centuries, like you said. Sooner or later, Koh will just get bored of the game and…"

"And supposing he does?" Kuruk interrupted. "What then? What's stopping him from just getting rid of Ummi? He'd die before he just handed her back to me."

"Koh may enjoy the game, but his cleverness and trickery aren't going to be much of a match for your dedication and perseverance," the young monk said sagely. "He probably just expects you to give up one day."

Kuruk just blinked. "Roku was right," he said, suddenly laughing. "You _do _have wisdom beyond your years."

"I don't know about that," Aang replied, modestly. "But I don't think you're condemned at all. How can fighting for the one you love be condemnation?"

"Perhaps you're right," Kuruk said, thoughtfully. "But I'm beginning to think this is how I'll pass the rest of eternity, chasing Koh to get Ummi."

"I don't know," Aang replied. "I can't predict the future, but even then, I still wouldn't see it as being condemned."

"And what if Koh took Katara?" Kuruk asked. "What if _you_ had to chase him for centuries just to get her back? You don't think that's being condemned?"

"No," Aang said, slowly. "I don't. Maybe if he took was someone like…Azula. That would be condemnation because as much as I dislike her, I wouldn't want Koh to get her, or anyone, really. But helping people close to you isn't condemnation, even if it takes a lifetime or longer to help them."

"You're too nice, Aang," Kuruk chuckled. "If I had been in your place, and if Koh had taken Azula or Ozai, I probably would have said good riddance and turned my back on them. But you're right; helping people like them would be worse than helping people like my Ummi. But still, I can't help but feel like I'm condemned, that even Ummi's condemned. I've spent four lifetimes trying to get her back and I still haven't succeeded. Sometimes I think Ummi will just sleep forever."

Aang started to wonder if pessimism was a Water Tribe thing. Sokka certainly had enough of it for their entire group at times.

"Maybe that's what I need to do," Kuruk said, breaking Aang from his train of thoughts. "This entire time, I've been thinking I'm condemned, that the rest of eternity will pass this way, but perhaps you're right and if I don't wallow in pessimism, perhaps I'll get somewhere."

Okay, so maybe pessimism is more of a Sokka thing, Aang thought, revising his previous statement.

"You're very lucky," Kuruk said, suddenly. "Koh hasn't come after the Avatar in a long time."

"I think he's more interested in collecting faces and keeping Ummi from you than attacking me," Aang said, sadly.

"Probably. But you don't have to worry about losing people like Katara."

"I don't?" Aang replied, genuinely surprised. He didn't obsess over the thought of losing Katara, but it wasn't like the idea had vanished from his mind either. He knew she was completely capable of protecting herself, but he still made sure that no matter what he did, she was okay.

"Of course not. With you, Koh doesn't stand much of a chance. You'd probably destroy the world before letting him take Katara, right?"

"That's one way to put it," the airbender said, gazing at the beautiful sleeping girl beside him. "But yeah, I guess I would."

Kuruk chuckled. "Just like Roku. You know, that man is quite good at showing no emotion at all. It's no wonder that Koh didn't try and take his face or Ta Min's, for that matter."

"Really?"

Kuruk nodded. "Really. Anyway, it's getting late and I'd better let you get some sleep. Next time Roku sends me, please try to have something worthwhile for me to do. As much as I enjoy chatting, I've already wasted some time I could have spent looking for Ummi."

"I'll try. But Roku must have been pretty worried if he sent you," Aang mused.

"He couldn't make it for some reason. But you know how he is, sometimes," Kuruk said. "He still worries you're thinking about the consequences and benefits of being the Avatar and such."

"Not really," he replied. "But at least he cares."

"Very true," Kuruk said, making a move to go. "I would tell you to watch out for Katara and your other friends, but you're doing a pretty good job. It's nice to know someone learned from all the mistakes of the past Avatars. Take care, Aang." And just like that, Kuruk's figure grew dimmer and dimmer as he walked away. A few seconds had elapsed until Aang could no longer make out his figure.

"So," a voice said, startling the airbender. "How much of that did you mean?"

Aang turned to find Katara wide awake, sitting beside him, a curious expression on her face as her cerulean eyes twinkled with an intensity he could only compare to the brightness of stars.

"How much of that did you hear?"

"Enough," the waterbender admitted. "Avatar Kuruk isn't exactly the quietest spirit."

Aang chuckled. "I guess not."

"You never answered my question, though. How much of that did you mean?" Katara demanded.

"All of it," he replied, meeting her gaze.

"Really?" Katara asked, softly, somewhat taken aback. "Isn't destroying the world for me a bit extreme?"

"Well, I saved it for you so…"

"You did _what_?" the waterbender asked, a shocked expression crossing her face.

"You think I defeated Ozai just because I had to?" Aang asked, his gray eyes twinkling,

Katara nodded dumbly. "I thought you wanted to."

"I did," Aang replied, lightly. "But I also did it for you."

"I didn't know I was worth it." Katara whispered.

"You are."

"So you also meant what you said before, about not being condemned if Koh took me and you had to find him like Avatar Kuruk?"

Aang nodded. "Finding Koh to get you back would not be a punishment for me. Maybe I'm a little crazy, but nothing I do for you would ever be condemnation."

"I think you are a little crazy," Katara said, giving him a warm smile.

Aang just shrugged and turned his gaze back at the landscape. Suddenly, Katara threw her arms around him, enveloping him in what looked like a bone-crushing hug, nearly causing the airbender to lose his balance.

"Thank you," she whispered.

"For what?" He asked as he wrapped his arms around her and felt a few of her tears soak the fabric of his clothes.

She looked up at him and underneath the layer of her tears, her eyes were sparkling brighter than any gems. "Everything," she whispered, smiling. "You're amazing."

"Not really," he replied, laughing. "I'm just crazy like you said and I'd do anything for you, but who wouldn't?"

He never found out the answer to that question because Katara chose that moment to press her lips to his.

"I don't know what I did to deserve any of this," she said.

"Nothing and everything," Aang replied, simply.

"You wouldn't really fight Avatar Kuruk if what he said had been true, would you?"

"You mean all that stuff he was saying about you possibly being Ummi's reincarnate?"

Katara nodded.

"Well if it was true, I wouldn't attack him, but I wouldn't let you go without a fight either."

This time, when Katara hugged Aang, he was well prepared for it. And suddenly, he realized that even if Kuruk had thought he had been condemned to looking for Ummi forever, he would never give up, because Ummi meant too much to him. And he realized Katara meant too much to him, so if he somehow shared the same fate as Kuruk, he couldn't think of himself as condemned. But he knew the chances of that happening were slim and that he and Katara would get to spend eternity together. She was, after all, his forever girl.

* * *

_I hope it was alright. ^^' I thought the idea was pretty interesting, but I don't know if I did this topic any justice. In spite of that, I like this one. Thanks for reading (I know it was longer than usual ^_^) And, as always, thank you for all the reviews I've gotten so far. You're all wonderful! :)_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	38. Eclipse

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything._

* * *

**XXXVIII. Eclipse**

_Your love surrounds me, it's everywhere._

_ It is my shelter, it is my air. _

_A moon eclipsing the burning sun,_

_ Making shade just for me._

~ Celine Dion, Shadow of Love

Sokka hated eclipses. Ever since Yue had sacrificed herself to become the Moon Spirit, he couldn't stand eclipses, or the new moon phase for that matter. When the moon was out, it gave him some comfort just knowing Yue was there, but when he couldn't see it, he felt as if he had lost her all over again. It was strange, but he couldn't really explain his feelings to anyone, not even Suki who tried to understand and make Sokka see that perhaps Yue was there even if he couldn't see her. He enjoyed the full moon phase a lot better. He and Suki would sit out at night and watch the moon and he'd tell her everything he could about Yue. The Kyoshi Warrior for her part, was never jealous of the Water Tribe Princess, and listened intently to all of Sokka's stories, while her heart went out to the princess who so nobly sacrificed herself to save her people.

Katara was the exact opposite. She didn't really enjoy the full moon phase because her waterbending was at its strongest and she was still cautious about bloodbending. It didn't affect her as it once had, but that wasn't to say it didn't affect her at all. After she had first been forced to learn the technique, she had spent countless nights staying up, feeling too nervous to sleep. For a long while, every full moon phase after that, her nights would pass in the same manner. She would lie awake in her room and stare blankly at something, trying to distract herself from thinking about bloodbending. Therefore, it was no surprise to Sokka that she loved eclipses and the new moon phase.

Despite all her complaining about the full moon and bloodbending, there was one thing Katara enjoyed. If nothing else, on those nights, she got to spend time with Aang, not that either of them needed an excuse to spend time together. But even if the two got little or no sleep, they enjoyed staying up at night and talking. And it was definitely much easier for Katara to forget all about her bloodbending when her mind was occupied by other things.

The night of the lunar eclipse found Sokka in a despondent mood, but Katara was reasonably happy. She was sorry her brother was feeling down, but it didn't do anything to ruin her cheerful mood. She really couldn't explain why she was so happy, but when Aang asked, she put it down to the waxing and waning of the moon as what affected her (and her bending).

"I'm beginning to think eclipses are unhealthy for waterbenders," Katara said to Aang as they strolled around. "I've got so much energy."

"Unhealthy for you, maybe," Aang said, grinning. "But I'm okay."

"You're the Avatar; you don't count," Katara said. "You're not just a waterbender."

Aang just laughed. "I think it's just you, Katara. I don't think it has anything to do with you being a waterbender."

"Who knows?" she asked, throwing her hands up. "But I feel like I have to do something or…"

"Or what?"

She shrugged. "Or I'll just die from boredom."

"You look too happy to look like you're bored," Aang laughed.

"I know," Katara replied, smiling. "If only Sokka could be happy." She said the last part wistfully and Aang turned to gaze at the lanky warrior talking with Suki and pointing to the moon every now and then. He felt sorry for Sokka and he wished he could do something, but he knew time was really all Sokka needed.

"I hope he's not still mad at himself for what happened to Yue," Katara said softly, watching her older brother's frame sag a bit as he spoke to Suki. "I've tried to tell him a thousand times it's not his fault, but he's stubborn."

"Must run in the family, then," Aang said, grinning. "Because you're not always so compliant either."

"I know," Katara chuckled. "But it's one of my most endearing traits."

The two burst out laughing.

"Still, I wish Sokka would cheer up a bit because when he gets depressed and starts thinking about Yue, I get depressed and…"

"And?" Aang prodded.

Katara sighed. "And I start counting the times I could have lost you."

Aang fell silent. By nature, he didn't like it when he worried anyone, but he hated it when he worried Katara. Now that the war was over, he was beginning to understand just often he had worried her and how worried she had been.

"So," he asked, venturing to know. "How many times was that?"

"Four," she replied, hollowly.

"Four?" he repeated. He could only think of one: the attack on the crystal catacombs in Ba Sing Se.

Katara nodded. "After the fight in the crystal catacombs in Ba Sing Se when you almost died, when you disappeared while we were sailing, the invasion on Day of the Black Sun, and Sozin's Comet."

"I guess there really are four," Aang said, somewhat surprised. He couldn't remember if the probability of death did anything to make him fight harder then. It certainly did now. "Sorry."

Katara looked up at him in surprise. "You're the one who almost got killed. What are you sorry for?"

He shrugged. "Making you worry, although three of those four times, I couldn't help it; I had to go."

"I know," she acquiesced. "It doesn't mean that I had to like it." She certainly hadn't liked it all those times she knew there was a possibility that he might not have returned. The aftermath of the fight in Ba Sing Se sometimes still gave her nightmares. Aang had almost died. The thought that he had been on the threshold of life and death had worried her sick then. She didn't need to dream bad dreams to be terrified, because her life had suddenly turned into a nightmare. Her belief in him was so strong, she hadn't paused to think what would have happened if he ever fell. She'd spent her childhood just dreaming the long-lost Avatar would return and save the world and he'd always seemed so powerful, that the idea of him dying seemed as ridiculous as the prospect of her firebending. But once they were on the stolen Fire Navy ship, and once she was left alone to heal him, the reality had hit her hard. In spite of everything, Aang might not have made it.

"I'm really sorry," Aang apologized again. "I know it mustn't have been easy on you."

Katara shrugged. "I don't know. I don't remember much because I usually block the bad memories out." She still hadn't told him everything about their failure in Ba Sing Se. When he has asked, she had made it a point to leave out how devastated she had been. For some reason, she feared he'd think she was weak if she revealed that her world had been shattered by his near death. She shuddered at the memories. She'd felt so helpless and alone, something she truly hated. It was as if her heart had stopped beating and she had stopped living all of a sudden. Just thinking about it made her cringe.

"Katara," Aang said, drawing her away from her gloomy trail of thoughts. "If you're going to waste your time worrying, why would you worry about me?"

Katara shot him an incredulous look. Because maybe I love you, she wanted to scream. Or maybe I need you more than I let either of us believe, or maybe because I simply care. "Why shouldn't I?" she demanded. "Am just supposed to let things happen?"

"I just assumed you'd be more worried about others. Besides, I can't stand it when people are worried about me."

"Even when I am?" she wondered.

"Especially when you are."

"Why?"

"Because the kind of worrying you do is unhealthy," he said, giving her a small smile. She grimaced, reluctant to admit that he had a point. In the days after their failure at Ba Sing Se, she had spent hours in solitary confinement, just thinking. She didn't remember eating or drinking, but knowing her family and friends, they must have forced her to at some point.

Aang sighed, noting her glum expression. "Why are we talking about this anyway?"

"I don't know," Katara sighed. "I just don't want anything bad to happen again. I think almost losing you four times is enough. But it's wishful thinking, right?"

Aang shrugged. "Bad things always happen to balance out the good things. At least, that's what the monks taught us. But hoping they don't is better than worrying. And if you're worried I'll run away again, you can stop now," He chuckled. "I think I've had enough running to last three lifetimes."

Katara wanted to smile, but she couldn't. "Oh great," she huffed, noticing the eclipse was finishing. "The eclipse is almost over and I'm all depressed now."

"Are you?" Aang wondered. Katara nodded. "I think I can fix that."

* * *

"And just like that, she was gone," Sokka said, sadly.

"I'm sorry," Suki said, as Sokka finished his story. "That one time, when you said you couldn't protect someone you loved, I thought you were being hard on yourself. And you know what?"

"What?" Sokka asked.

"I think you still are. It's not your fault Yue's gone."

"Maybe if I had been more convincing…"

"Sokka, being more convincing doesn't work on people like Yue. They do what they have to do no matter what. And at a time like that, during a siege, I don't think you being convincing would have helped."

Sokka sighed. "You're probably right. I still wish she hadn't done it, though."

"Maybe if things had been different…"

"Hold on," Sokka said, suddenly. "Are you thinking what I think you're thinking?"

Suki just blinked. "I don't know. What?"

"You've spent the entire night listening to me talk about how much I liked Yue. You don't think you're a replacement for her, do you?"

"I didn't and I hope not," Suki said. "I think you're standards must have fallen if you're replacing a princess for me."

"You're not a replacement," Sokka said. "The nice thing about love is that you can always make more. Yue's special, but so are you."

Suki smiled. "Thanks, Sokka."

"Look," the warrior exclaimed, pointing to the sky where the eclipse was finishing. "It looks like it's a full moon tonight." Sokka smiled, suddenly realizing that even if the eclipses momentarily shielded the moon from view it didn't mean Yue wasn't there. As she had once said, she was always with him. And even if she wasn't, Suki always was. And as long as they were both around, Sokka didn't think he'd ever feel depressed again.

"It's beautiful," Suki said, gazing up at moon that hung in a sea of iridescent stars.

"It is," Sokka agreed, wholeheartedly before kissing her. "Just like you."

* * *

Across the estate, Aang and Katara sat side by side along the riverbank that ran along the house, watching fireworks light up the night sky as a village across the river celebrated a local holiday.

"Still feeling depressed?" Aang asked.

Katara grinned. Sometimes she thought Aang loved her too much to let her stay depressed for long. "How can I possibly be with you around?" she demanded, kissing him.

And as the two couples kissed, Yue shone down upon them in all her splendor.

* * *

_Thanks for all the reviews! :)_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	39. One of a Kind

_Just a random idea I got after watching Return to Omashu. I hope it's okay. :)_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender._

* * *

**XXXIX. One of a Kind**

"_You can learn many things from children._"

~ Franklin P. Jones

"Katara! Katara, where are you?"

"Coming," the waterbender called, grabbing the little one year old crawling around the house and opening the door. "What's wrong?"

Kimiko, their neighbor, looked flustered. "My husband's in Omashu for the week and my mother-in-law got sick so I need to go take care of her. She lives in the next town so I won't be home all day. Could you…would it be too much to ask you to watch my kids?"

"Not at all," Katara replied. How hard would it be to look after two kids? She wondered, glancing at the little boy and girl on her doorstep. They smiled up at her and Katara chuckled.

The young mother smiled. "Thank you." She turned to go, but stopped. "Is she yours?" Kimiko wondered, her green eyes sparkling as she pointed to the one year old girl Katara carried.

"No," Katara replied, blushing a bit. She knew exactly what Kimiko was thinking. "I'm just babysitting for another friend."

Kimiko laughed. "If you say so." She bent down to kiss her children goodbye before whispering to them to be good. As soon as Kimiko left, the twins Kiko and Yuan darted into the house.

"Katara, Katara, can we play house?" Kiko asked.

"Don't you think I'm a little too old for that?" the waterbender wondered.

"No way," Kiko cried. "You're the only babysitter that plays with us. Our old babysitter was a meanie."

Yuan nodded vigorously. "Yeah," he said, sticking out his tongue. "Once, when our mom went away, she put us to bed at six in the evening. I told her we were big kids and we could go to bed whenever we wanted and then she got mad and spanked me."

Katara didn't know how true that was, but she could easily imagine how frustrated their babysitter could have been. The rambunctious four year olds were tiring to look after, but luckily Katara knew some tricks to get them to settle down.

"Who's the cute baby?" Kiko asked, tugging on Katara's dress to get a better look at the little girl.

"Her name's Lein."

"She looks like Kiko's doll," Yuan said, making a face. "She's so squishy."

Lien gurgled happily and Katara secretly wondered if all boys were like that around babies.

"She can play house too," Kiko exclaimed. "Yuan can be the daddy, I'll be the mommy, and Lein can be the baby."

"What about Katara?" Yuan demanded. "She should be the mommy. She's way older."

"How about you two play?" Katara said. "I think Lein's too young to play, but you two can."

"Can we use the spare rooms?" Kiko pleaded.

Katara nodded. "As long as there's nothing in the rooms, you can use them." She watched the two run off, shaking her head. She always thought the house was far too big for just five people, but at least the space came in handy when she was babysitting.

"Katara?"

The waterbender heard the front door open and close and Toph entered with two little kids. "What happened? You didn't forget, did you?"

"Forget what?"

"You promised the old lady down the street you'd babysit her grandkids today. She was going crazy looking for you."

"Not Mei-Li and Keiji."

"They're all yours," Toph grinned, gently urging the kids to go to her. "Have fun."

"Wait," Katara cried, as Toph headed out the door. "I need help. I can't babysit five kids at once."

"I don't babysit," Toph said. "Besides, kids don't really like me."

"Well, find Suki or Aang, someone. I need help."

"I'll try," the earthbender sighed. "But I can't find Twinkle Toes anywhere. He's good at vanishing."

"Just find someone fast," Katara pleaded. "I don't know how long I can watch all five of them before something happens."

Toph just nodded and walked away. Katara closed the door and turned to find the two kids smiling up at her.

"What?" She wondered.

Three year old Keiji just giggled. "Gran said we get to spend all day here."

"She did?" Katara wailed. "Oh no."

"You don't want us?" Two-year old Mei-Li asked, looking crestfallen.

"I do," she hastily corrected. "It's just that I have to watch some other kids too." And if I don't get help, I'm doomed, she added silently. She loved the little kids in the town and for some reason, they all liked her, but as much as she enjoyed babysitting them, she didn't think she had it in her to watch five of the most rambunctious kids at once.

"Can we go play?" Keiji asked.

"Sure. Kiko and Yuan are using the spare rooms to play. You can join them if you want."

"Come," Mei-Li demanded, reaching for Katara's hand.

Katara just laughed. "If I play with you, you won't get to eat any lunch. Someone's got to make it."

Keiji and Mei-Li just shuffled off to find the twins and Katara headed to the kitchen. She set Lein down where she could keep an eye on her and cook at the same time, but the little girl still had a knack for making mischief when the waterbender was watching her. So for the next two hours, between making lunch for five little kids and watching the little girl crawl all over the place, Katara felt like she had done enough work to last the week. Of course the minute she shouted "lunch time" all four kids came trooping into the dining room with appetites and eyed the food longingly. It must have taken her another half hour to get them settled before she actually gave them the food.

"This is so good," Yuan said, slurping his soup. Katara just smiled before turning back to Lien and trying to feed her a mouthful of her food. Lien just knocked the spoon away and gurgled as Katara cleaned it up.

"Our mom never makes food like this," Kiko said. "She hires a cook. But this food is good."

"Thanks," Katara said.

"When I grow up," Yuan said, "I'm going to marry a girl who can cook just like you, Katara."

Katara laughed. "You have quite a few years to go before you get there."

The children finished their lunch quickly and Katara thought that she would get to relax, at least until the evening, when the kids demanded to play outside or when they wanted a snack. But she soon realized that nothing seemed to sap their energy and in fact, they seemed to have more of it. From all the shouting and the yelling, she could tell they wouldn't tire for quite some time. So she just watched Lein for a while before checking on the other four.

"Look," Kiko said, smiling up at her. "I'm a waterbender, just like you."

Katara laughed, but she stopped short when she noticed that the four year old had somehow gotten her hands on one of her dresses and was using it in her pretend game. The hem was tearing and as the dress was far too big for her, it was getting dirty trailing across the floor.

"Kiko, where did you get that?" she demanded, helping the little girl out of it.

"It was there," she said, pointing to Katara's room. "On the bed. I want to be a waterbender too."

Katara sighed. "Not with my clothes, please."

"Look what I found," Yuan exclaimed dragging one of Sokka's swords from the closet. Katara groaned. She had completely forgotten that Sokka kept his swords in one of the spare rooms. "I'm going to be a fierce warrior." He hoisted the weapon above his head, but it was too heavy for him.

"Be careful," Katara cried, lunging for the sword and snatching it from Yuan before he hit one of the others. "You could really hurt someone with that."

"This?" Keiji asked, holding up Sokka's boomerang.

"That too," she replied, taking it from him. "Can't you kids play something without touching anything? Please?"

"Yes, Katara," they chorused.

She gave them a smile before going back to Lein. She was much more content with crawling around and trying to walk than doing anything else, so Katara spent the next few hours chasing the crawling toddler and making sure she didn't get hurt. Of course in the same time span, the other four children managed to nearly knock over a bookshelf, steal cookies that Suki had baked, accidentally break one of Toph's earthbending trophies and frighten a sleeping Momo. By then, Katara was ready to take the kids to their respective houses but she knew no one would be home.

"Where's Toph?" she muttered, snatching Lein just before she crawled into the fireplace. Lein smiled and drooled, clapping her hands as Katara set her down on the other end of the room. She was so preoccupied watching Lein she didn't notice Yuan and Keiji steal something from the kitchen. It wasn't until she heard the shrieks of laughter coming from the spare room that she decided to check on them.

"What are you kids…?" The words died in her throat as he watched Keiji and Yuan "battling" with kitchen knives. Although they were too blunt to cause serious damage to anyone, they were still dangerous.

"Stop that," she admonished over the laughter of the two girls, but the boys didn't seem to hear her. Katara caught Yuan before he ran out the door and snatched the kitchen knife back.

"What were you two thinking?" she cried. "Are you trying to get me in trouble with your parents?"

"We were just playing warrior, Katara. Come play," Keiji said.

Katara groaned. "I can't. I have to watch Lein."

"She can play too," Mei-Li said.

"No, she can't. She'll get hurt." Katara sighed.

"Can we play outside then?" Kiko wondered.

"It looks like it's going to rain. Stay inside," Katara said. "Besides, you're having fun, aren't you?"

The four kids nodded and Katara took Lein back to the main room. For a while, it really seemed like the kids had settled down, but suddenly, Keiji and Kiko were screaming at the top of their lungs and Mei-Li came running towards her.

"Now what?" she asked, noticing the two year old was sobbing hard. Mei-Li just pointed to the spare room and when Katara looked up, she was sure she would have fainted if she wasn't sitting down.

"Mei-Li, watch Lein for me," she said, grabbing her water skin and heading for the spare room. A thick cloud of smoke was billowing out of the room and Kiko was standing petrified in the doorway.

"What happened?" Katara demanded.

"Yuan and Keiji stole some candles so we could play firebender. But we didn't have fire so Yuan thought he'd make some like Dad," Kiko sobbed. "Only he set fire to the room. He's still in there."

Under normal circumstances, Katara would have congratulated the four year old on discovering his bending abilities, but considering that the room was on fire and that Yuan was still in there, she did the only thing she could think of.

"Keep this," Katara said, handing Keiji her water skin. "If the fire comes too close to you, pour some water on it. And whatever you do, stay here. I'll get Yuan."

The children all nodded and Katara darted into the inferno to find the missing child. The smoke was thick and breathing was almost impossible without inhaling too much smoke. Katara just hoped Yuan had the presence of mind to be careful instead of trying to firebend again.

"Katara!"

She heard Yuan's scream from somewhere within the room, but she couldn't see him anywhere. For the first time, she realized just how big the room was. If she didn't find Yuan soon, they'd both be in trouble.

* * *

When Toph had found Aang and told him that Katara needed help babysitting five children, he had gladly taken a break from running errands and had walked back to the house. He heard the children screaming from inside and smiled to himself. They must be having lots of fun, he thought. Of course, the minute he saw smoke billowing from one of the spare rooms in their large house, he knew that they were screams of terror, not happiness. He darted inside only to find Keiji, Kiko, Mei-Li, and Lein watching the fire wide eyed. Keiji had Katara's water skin and was beating out a few sparks here and there.

"What happened?" Aang asked, using waterbending to put out some of the fire near the children.

"Yuan firebended," Kiko said. "And he set the room on fire. Katara is still in there with Yuan."

"Stay here," he ordered before darting in to find the waterbender and the little firebender. The smoke inside the room made it hard to see and breathe, but Aang could vaguely make out Katara's form dodging flames and calling for Yuan. She didn't see him until he pulled her away from some falling debris.

"What are you doing here?" She demanded.

"Toph said you needed help."

"Can you find Yuan? I can't find him anywhere." Katara said and Aang noted she looked really worried.

"He's here. I can feel his vibrations."

Katara breathed a sigh of relief and followed Aang to the opposite end of the room where Yuan was huddled in a corner.

"Katara," he cried, throwing his arms around the waterbender when they found him. "I'm sorry."

"Are you okay?" She asked, as she followed Aang out the room. Yuan nodded. "Then stay with the others while we put out the fire."

It really only took to a few minutes, but to the five children watching, it felt like an eternity before the fire was put out. Luckily the outside of the house showed no signs of the turmoil within. The inside of the spare room, however, was another story. It looked like a volcano had erupted.

"Katara?" Yuan asked, tentatively. "You're not mad, are you?"

Katara knew she probably should have been, but looking at the sad expressions the children gave her, she knew she didn't have the heart to yell at them.

"No," she answered. "I'm not mad. Let's get you healed."

Yuan smiled gratefully and while Katara healed the kids, Aang watched them.

"You look tired," Aang said, after all the minor burns had been healed and the kids sat and played quietly in the main room.

"It's been a long day," Katara said, shrugging. "But I'm glad you came. I don't know how much longer I could have held out, watching them on my own."

"You seemed to be doing a pretty good job," Aang pointed out.

"You weren't here when they started using kitchen knives to play warrior."

Aang laughed. "Sounds like they kept you busy."

Katara nodded. "I think after this, no one will ever want me to babysit again."

"I wouldn't be too sure about that," Aang grinned. "I heard you're putting a lot of babysitters out of business."

Katara barked a laugh. "Yeah right."

"She's _way_ better than our babysitter," Kiko piped up. "She's the best."

"That's just because I haven't yelled at you all day," Katara laughed.

Kiko giggled.

"So are you going to tell my parents?" Yuan wondered.

"They'll need to know you're a firebender," Aang pointed out.

Yuan sighed. "Dad's going to get really mad if he finds out what I did."

"Maybe he won't have to," Aang said thoughtfully. "It was an accident after all."

"Really?" Yuan asked Aang, his eyes shining with relief. "You won't tell him about the fire?"

Aang just laughed. "No, not unless he asks."

"Thank you!" Yuan cried, giving him a hug. "Thank you so much."

"Smooth move, Mr. Avatar," Katara whispered. "You'll make one heck of a babysitter, lying to the parents."

"I never said I'd lie," Aang corrected. "But unless Yuan's parents ask, there's no harm in not telling them he set fire to the room. I think telling them he's a firebender will be enough of a shock."

And they found out it was. Kimiko had looked like she was going to faint when Katara told her that her son was a firebender. Of course the moment the little four year old demonstrated by creating a small flame, Kimiko beamed and peppered her son with kisses, congratulating him and remarking upon how proud she was.

"I'm glad she took that so well," Katara said, closing the door as Kimiko and the others collected their kids and left. The house suddenly seemed eerily silent. "Knowing her, I thought she'd be upset or something."

Aang just laughed. He could picture Kimiko reprimanding Yuan, but it was just her nature sometimes.

"When I was little, Gran Gran always used to say little kids were such a pain and I used to ask her how she could say that. Now, I think I finally understand. Those kids are cute and fun to play with, but I'm so tired, I could fall asleep right now."

"Get used to it," Aang said. "You're in high demand."

"I am?"

He nodded. "You're one of a kind. Of course you'll be."

"I don't know," Katara sighed. "After all this babysitting, something tells me I'd make a horrible mother."

"The chances of you being a horrible mother are as likely as the chances of Azula suddenly turning good," Aang replied.

"You mean possible?"

"I mean virtually nonexistent. You're an amazing person, Katara. I don't think you'd make a horrible babysitter or mother."

"You're just saying that," Katara replied.

"No I'm not," he grinned. "It's true. You're one of a kind."

* * *

_Thanks for all the reviews!_

_~ Cassidy A._


	40. Intoxicated

_Um... I have no explanation for this one._

_Disclaimer: I own nothing._

* * *

**XL. Intoxicated**

_Oh, kiss me beneath the milky twilight  
Lead me out on the moonlit floor  
Lift your open hand  
Strike up the band and make the fireflies dance  
Silver moon´s sparkling, so kiss me_

~ Avril Lavigne, Kiss Me

The first ball Katara had ever been to had been shortly after Zuko's coronation ceremony, to commemorate the dawn of a new era. She remembered watching the young couples dance and socialize. They seemed the most animated, the most willing to do anything. She often thought that if it had been left to the older nobles, the dance floor would be empty at almost all times because after a few dances, they returned to their seats and spent the rest of the night socializing and drinking. Fire Nation wine, she had heard one of the nobles explain, was one of the best in the world. Its flavor was supposedly unrivalled by that of any other.

Now, years later, when she found herself at yet another ball hosted by a prominent aristocratic family in the Fire Nation and when she had the opportunity to try the fabled drink, Katara stayed well away from it. She noticed that among the young couples, it was common for many of them to drink, but after seeing a few inebriated women at a ball long ago, she had no desire to end up like them. But truthfully, she had a much better reason from staying away from the wine and the similar drinks. The first time she had tried it, it had tasted strange and she got the feeling that if she kept trying it, she'd end up like the women she had seen: foolish, clumsy, and incoherent. And she couldn't afford to end up drunk when it didn't take much to make her clumsy and incoherent. She didn't need wine or spirits to make her drunk when sometimes the mere presence of a certain airbender made her look and act like she was intoxicated. Gone were the days when he showed any nervousness around her, or when a mere smile from her could distract him to no end. Now, he seemed to produce that effect on her sometimes and worse yet, he seemed to know it.

Katara sighed to herself, smiling. She knew that she had a problem with no remedy but somehow she was okay with that.

"Katara, are you okay?"

She looked up to find Sokka watching her.

"You were smiling at nothing," he pointed out, taking a seat beside her.

"I was just thinking about something," she admitted.

"What?"

"This and that," she lied.

"You haven't done much of anything since we got here," Sokka pointed out. "Why don't you dance?"

"Aang's busy at the moment and unless it's someone I know, I'd rather not," she answered.

"Well then why don't you eat?" Sokka suggested. "You look hungry."

Katara smiled. The only thing she was hungry for was spending time with Aang. She didn't know if it was the setting or just her, but she so badly wanted him to dance with her.

"I'm okay," she said. "I really don't mind just sitting here and watching the people."

"You actually like watching people like them?" Sokka asked, gesturing to the group of drunkards within her line of vision.

"Other than them," Katara corrected. Truthfully, drunkards scared her because it seemed hard to believe that a few glasses of the finest wine or spirits could turn any reasonable person into a half-crazed, clumsy fool who ended up humiliated at the end of the day.

"They're really drunk, aren't they?" Sokka asked disgustedly, gazing at some of the nobles. Katara nodded, but she didn't really blame them. Some of them looked too old to move, so what could they do at a ball other than eat or drink? "When we were little, I always wanted to try a sip of wine or something. Now, I really don't. I'm glad the Water Tribes aren't too keen on having wine at our celebrations."

Katara flushed at the thought of what would happen if she had ended up drunk at a Water Tribe ceremony. She couldn't imagine her father would be too happy. Being around Aang would be a different story. Her usual clumsiness coupled with being drunk would probably spell disaster and the end of life as she knew it. The thought was too humiliating to entertain.

"Stay away from the drinks, little sister," Sokka said suddenly, patting her shoulder and getting up.

"I plan to," Katara replied and Sokka smiled, walking away. "I think I'm already intoxicated."

"Gee me s'more," She heard one of the old, frail, drunkards clamor. The waiter gently muttered something to him and the old man started. "Makes me feel alive, young man. I need s'more."

"But, sir it's not good for you."

"I know that," he snapped. "But I want s'more. It makes me feel young and alive." Secretly, Katara didn't think the old man could get any more alive than he was, but the waiter reluctantly poured him some more wine and when he finished, he was practically dancing.

"Would you like some?"

Katara jumped when she realized one of the drunkards was talking to her. He was a young man, perhaps a few years older than her, but it was clear that he was from the Earth Kingdom.

"Choose your poison," he slurred, his hazel eyes fixed on her as his unsteady hand poured a drink for her.

"My poison is a little different," Katara said, declining the offer and glancing at the airbender who looked trapped in a boring conversation.

"Wine's delicious," the man continued, holding up his cup and taking a rather large sip. He coughed as the liquid burned down his throat. "It's so good. The more I have, the more I want."

If that was what intoxication was, Katara considered she was intoxicated.

"Why are you smiling at me like that?" She wondered, noticing the drunken man was watching her with a huge smile plastered on his face.

"You're nice," he said. "Kiss me."

Katara nearly fell off her chair. Remember, Katara, it's the wine talking, she told herself. He's drunk.

"I'd rather not," she said politely.

"Then can I kiss you?" he wondered with a hiccup.

She knew she should have been politer considering the man looked like an aristocrat, but considering he was drunk, she settled for something simple. "No." Unless you're the Avatar, she added silently. Aang's kisses were sweet and chaste, the kind that left her wanting more.

"Oh spirits," she groaned, burying her face in her hands. "I'm not really thinking about this, am I?" She'd never really thought about kisses before. Until she met Aang, she hadn't gotten any.

"Wha-?" the drunken man began, but before he could continue, Katara darted into the courtyard for fresh air.

The night sky was twinkling with stars and a silver moon sparkled high above. The soft glow of lanterns and the intermittent light of the fireflies filled the courtyard in a hazy orange glow. A few feet away, the small duck pond reflected the iridescent light of the stars and crickets chirped in the long grasses that waved in the gentle summer breeze. Katara spotted a young couple, perhaps about her age, walking hand in hand and whispering to each other. They looked incredibly happy and content to be away from all the noise and the people inside. She wished Aang was there, but last she had seen him, he had been talking with another stern faced aristocrat, probably about some proposal or other. Lately, that was why most of the aristocrats talked to him; it was always about work. She never understood why they came to the celebrations if all they cared about was work.

"Katara, what are you doing out here all by yourself?"

From the corner of her eye, she could make out Aang's slender frame moving towards her.

"Fresh air," she said. "It was too stuffy in there. And I can think in peace out here."

"What were you thinking about?"

"Lots of things," she said. "But one thing in particular."

"What?"

"If you have a problem and you know there's no solution, what would you do?"

"Try and tackle it, I guess," Aang replied. "But what kind of problem doesn't have a solution."

Katara shrugged. She didn't know how to explain it to him. _I think I'm intoxicated by your presence, Aang. And I don't know whether it's this setting or me just being crazy, but I really want you to kiss me._ That was the best she could come up with. She could imagine the strange looked he'd give her and how he would ask her quietly if she was feeling okay.

"Katara?"

She looked up at him, questioningly.

"You know, too much thinking can be bad sometimes," he said, smiling. "You should dance."

She noticed his outstretched hand and took it as the orchestra inside struck up a new tune.

"It might be true, but not thinking can be _very _bad, at least for me," she said.

"Why's that?" he wondered.

"Because then I end up like them," she said, gesturing to the drunkards inside the ballroom.

"Drunk?" he asked, confused. "But you never…"

"I meant foolish and clumsy," she corrected. "You have a way of doing that to me."

"I make you foolish and clumsy?" He repeated.

"Not all the time," she admitted. "But sometimes, you do." Like right now, she wanted to say. She didn't really know why she was telling him all of this, but she couldn't stop.

Aang just laughed. "I never thought I could have that effect on anyone, let alone you."

Katara rolled her eyes. "Do you see some of the girls who follow you around?"

Honestly, Aang hadn't even bothered paying attention to them because Katara was the only girl he really cared about. "Not really, no."

Katara just sighed. "I don't understand how you can be so oblivious about what you do to them."

"I'm still oblivious about what I do to you," he admitted. "Do I really do that to you?"

"Make me foolish and clumsy?" Katara asked. "Sometimes."

"Why?"

Their dance faltered, but they kept going.

"Because being with you sometimes, is like being intoxicated. The more time I spend with you, the more time I want. And I can't think straight or concentrate; it's nice and annoying at the same time."

Being intoxicated? Aang mused. It was funny, because what she was feeling now was what he had felt before. Katara's presence sometimes had distracted him to no end. It was just like she said: nice and annoying. He loved having her around, but personally, he had hated how she distracted him, even if she had thought it adorable once upon a time.

"So," He said, grinning. "You're intoxicated?"

"If intoxication is wanting more of something when you already have it, then yes," She admitted, shamelessly. "I am." By now, they had stopped dancing even though the orchestra was still playing and the couples inside were still twirling at dizzying speeds on the dance floor.

She didn't really know how it happened, but one minute she was watching the dancers and reflecting on how crazy her problem was and the next minute, Aang was kissing her. Katara was momentarily taken aback when she realized how much she had wanted him to do that. But suddenly she didn't care if she really was being crazy or it was just the setting and the music that made her think like that. The celebration, the people, the music, they all seemed a world away. She wasn't conscious of anything but the beautiful summer night around her and Aang.

"Better?" he asked.

Katara shrugged smiling. It was what she wanted, but it left her feeling satisfied and craving more at the same time.

"I've been waiting for you to do that all night," she admitted, throwing caution to the wind. "I think I've gone crazy."

"No. I've wanted to do that all night too."

"Why?"

He grinned. "Because I like knowing you're mine and I can do that."

And as he kissed her again, Katara thought maybe being intoxicated like this wasn't so bad after all.

* * *

_Thanks for all the reviews so far :)_

_~ Cassidy A._

_P.S. I'm running out of ideas. Any requests? I can't promise I'll get to them or do any justice to the topic, but I'm willing to try :)_


	41. Personally

_I finally got around to posting this. I meant to do it yesterday, but I forgot . Anyway, I can't take credit for this one. The idea (and the chapter title) is Sylvanna's (thanks for the idea ^_^). I hope it's okay. Enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I own nothing. Everything belongs to Mike and Bryan :)_

* * *

**XLI. Personally**

_"Sometimes it's the smallest decision that can change your life forever."_

~ Keri Russell

The orange glow was fading from the treetops as the sun slowly slipped beneath the horizon. Despite the lack of food in his stomach, Zuko felt like he still had energy to burn and although he probably would have, given the time, the village leader was beckoning indoors into the giant hall and so Zuko obediently followed him indoors. It seemed strange that after all this time, the people of Senlin village would just welcome him, especially after he had hounded them to give him clues as to Aang's whereabouts, but it seemed as if they had forgiven him. He still felt guilty, but he was glad the people here weren't one to hold grudges.

His thoughts were distracted by the village leader who rose and gave a short speech thanking Zuko, Aang, and the others for helping with the reconstruction. Though much hadn't been damaged, Zuko still felt he owed them help, especially after he had destroyed part of their village before chasing Aang into the Fire Navy blockade. As the village leader went on to list all the changes that had occurred, Zuko realized with surprise, that the village wasn't the only thing that had changed. He realized he had too. It wasn't as if he hadn't known it before, but now that he had some leisure time to reflect upon, he realized that he had changed so completely, there was no semblance between who he had been and who he was now. The thought gave him a strange feeling.

"You've been awfully quiet," Sokka said, once dinner was over and they had ventured back home. Katara and Suki were inside doing something and Toph had locked herself in her room, so Zuko had decided to spend some time outside. "You haven't said a word. You're not still upset Mai couldn't come here, are you?"

Zuko shook his head as Sokka took a seat across from him, leaning again a pillar. Truthfully, he had been, but when Mai said she was going to see her family, he knew he couldn't argue with her.

"I was just thinking," Zuko admitted, watching a few insects hover around the lanterns that hung over the veranda. Despite the humid Earth Kingdom summer, the insects buzzed contentedly around the small fires. "So much has changed."

"I know," Sokka said. "It seems hard to believe this is the same village we fought Hei Bai in. When we first came here, the entire forest had been burned down. You'd never guess looking at it now. It's so green."

Zuko nodded. "I know. It's strange, how much we've changed too."

Sokka shrugged. "I don't think we've changed all that much. Well, you have, but the rest of us haven't."

"A while ago, if anyone had told me I'd be friends with the very same people I tried to hunt once, I'd have laughed and probably told them to keep dreaming."

Sokka grinned. "Yeah, I know what you mean. So," he asked casually. "Why'd you do it?"

Zuko looked at him questioningly. "Do what?"

"Change sides. It's not like your father would have felt differently about you."

Zuko shrugged. "I guess I finally woke up. I spent three years hunting the Avatar. For some reason, I was convinced my honor hinged on finding him and bringing him back to my father. And after all that time chasing you guys, I realized something. I was trying to capture another person to regain _my _honor. I don't know how I got that idea in my head."

"I thought it was something Ozai had made you do if you wanted to go back."

Zuko shook his head. "My father wanted to find the Avatar, but for the entirely wrong reasons. I wasn't planning on killing Aang, even if I was a jerk and I did some pretty mean things. My father wouldn't have thought twice about it, though. Knowing him, he'd try and find some way to do that."

"It's strange," Sokka said, leaning back and swatting a few fireflies away from him. "Now that I think about it, I guess you were never really evil, like Ozai. I mean, you did do some pretty mean stuff but I think it's just because you were so caught up in the whole honor restoring business that you didn't think about it."

"Are you saying what I think you're saying?" Zuko asked, surprised.

"Look, I'm not saying what you did was okay," Sokka clarified. "I just think that maybe you weren't as evil as we made you out to be. You had a good goal, trying to restore your honor, but you just went about it the wrong way."

"You don't need to tell me," Zuko muttered. "My uncle always said that honor lies within us and only we can restore it. If I had listened to him earlier, I probably would have realized the same thing. Like I said, I have no idea how I got the idea that bringing Aang back to my father would help. Knowing him, he'd have probably said something like, 'you got lucky, son,' and then kicked me out again."

"Out of curiosity," Sokka asked. "What would you have done if you had given Aang to your father and he welcomed you back?"

"I don't know. I guess I just thought everything would go back to normal, but things never work that way. And anyway, when Azula lied about Aang's death and told my father I killed him, he did welcome me back. But it didn't feel right, so I left."

"Just like that?" Sokka said. "I mean, I know you said you changed and everything but you just woke up one day and decided to leave?"

Zuko shook his head. "Not really. I think it was just being back in the Fire Nation after so long. I realized that this war was pointless. We're taught that the Fire Nation is superior to all other nations and that the war was our way of showing to the world how great we were. But it was a lie. And I told my father during the eclipse when you guys staged that invasion just what I thought. So it took longer than a day, Sokka, for me to change."

"Ozai mustn't have been too happy."

"You're talking about a guy who doesn't know the first thing about happiness. He's probably better off being described as a sadistic, war-mongering, Firelord who enjoyed killing people as part of his world conquest. He tried to kill me when I told him that everything he had done was just a lie and that no matter what people would never look up to the Fire Nation. But hey, what's a few death threats every now and then? It's not like I haven't gotten them before."

"So you finally woke up, huh?"

Zuko nodded. "Sometimes, I wish I had done it sooner. It would have saved me a lot of trouble if I had stopped being a coward and just gone and faced my father and told him that this war was ridiculous. But I didn't realize it until after Ba Sing Se."

"It definitely would have saved us a lot more trouble if you had," Sokka said, cringing at the memories. "It only took Aang almost dying to bring you to your senses."

"Actually," Zuko admitted. "I didn't realize until I was at the war meeting with my father and he started talking about how to get rid of the Earth Kingdom. He asked me what to do because I had been among then, and I suddenly realized that even if he had welcomed me back and given me my honor and my throne, this wasn't what I wanted to do. Maybe it was because good and bad have always been inside me, like Uncle said; I really don't know. I just know that after that, I knew I didn't want any part in my father's scheme. So I came here to find you guys and teach Aang firebending. I know it probably doesn't make up for almost killing you guys at the North Pole or chasing you all over the world, but it's better than nothing, right?"

"Well considering all you've done and all that you're doing," Sokka said. "I guess you've made up for it. Besides, if you can get Katara to forgive you, then you've probably made up for it."

"What makes you say that?"

"Katara doesn't forgive easily; you of all people should know that. I mean, you did help her try and find the guy who killed my mom."

"Yeah, I know," Zuko sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Sometimes, I think she still hates me."

Sokka shook his head. "Between you and me, she's crazy sometimes. But she doesn't hate you."

"I really hope not," Zuko said, smiling a bit. "I'd like to live."

"What?"

"She never told you?" Zuko asked, surprised. He thought by now, Katara must have told Sokka what she had done.

The warrior shook his head.

"The day I came to find you guys in the Western Air Temple, Katara threatened to kill me if I slipped up or did anything that might hurt Aang."

"She did _what?_" Sokka cried.

"She threatened to kill me," Zuko repeated nonchalantly.

"When you said you got a few death threats, I thought you meant from your dad or Azula, not my sister."

"Technically, if you count the fight at the North Pole before I took Aang and the fight in the catacombs in Ba Sing Se as death threats, she's given me more than Azula. She was pretty mad at me."

"Yeah, well, I think she had a reason to be. And even if she did threaten your life, she wouldn't actually do it, Zuko. She's a softy, not that I'm complaining," Sokka said. "As far as I'm concerned, I'd prefer it if my baby sister didn't kill anyone."

"Well, those weren't just empty words," Zuko pointed out. "Your baby sister was dead serious. I think she meant it when she said she'd permanently end my destiny if she had one reason to doubt me."

"She said that?" Sokka cried. Zuko nodded.

"Are you two talking about me?"

Both Zuko and Sokka jumped when Katara's voice suddenly sounded behind them and they exchanged glances.

"Yeah, we…" Sokka began.

"No," Zuko said, hastily.

"If you're going to lie, do a better job," Katara said to Zuko. "So, what were you talking about?"

"Death threats," Sokka said, giving her an unpleasant look. Katara just walked past them with a basket of clothes in her hand and began to string them up on the clothesline. "You actually threatened to kill Zuko?"

Katara nodded and Sokka blinked. "Wait, you're admitting it?"

She turned around to face him and nodded. "Yeah. What's the big deal?"

"See?" Sokka said, turning to Zuko. "She was just joking. She wouldn't admit it otherwise. I knew she didn't mean it."

"Actually, I did." Katara said, picking up the basket and walking past them. She stopped in the doorway and turned to face them once again. "Just so you know," she said to Zuko. "That's still in effect. I could still end your destiny, any day of the year." She smiled. "Goodnight."

Sokka just watched her disappear into the house. "She was kidding, right?"

"Um…" Zuko wanted to believe that she was, but the look she had given him said otherwise. Of course, Katara was very good at acting like she wanted to kill him, so she could have been faking the whole thing. "I don't know."

Sokka just blinked. "How does Aang put up with her?" he wondered.

Zuko shrugged. "No clue. But I told you she meant it."

"Maybe. But don't lose sleep over it. As long as you don't change, I think you'll be okay."

Zuko grinned. "I think I've done enough changing for a lifetime."

* * *

_If anyone has any requests, I'm open to trying them. And thanks for all the reviews I've gotten so far :) _

_~ Cassie_


	42. Keepsakes

_I meant to post this yesterday, but I didn't (I fell asleep and forgot ^^'). Once again, I can't take credit for the idea or the chapter title as they are Sylvanna's (thanks again for the idea. I can only hope I did it justice.) Enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything. :(_

* * *

**XLII. Keepsakes**

_"A hundred hearts would be too few to carry all my love for you."_

~ Unknown

Ba Sing Se's Upper Ring was known for its large houses with immaculate fronts and well kept lawns bursting with seasonal flora, so when a few government officials passed by the Avatar's large house with its perfectly manicured green garden, they were surprised to see all the windows and doors thrown open and water flooding out the front door. Even stranger, they noted, was the smoke billowing from the chimney. In the warmth of the spring, the Earth King's advisors couldn't imagine why someone was using a fireplace. And so, they spent several minutes, drinking in the scene, wondering just what the young Avatar was up to, leaving his house in such a manner, especially when the Upper Ring was such a prominent tourist attraction and when they had important ambassadors from the Fire Nation visiting.

"It's not usually like this," a government official explained when an ambassador demanded the meaning of the house being left in such a condition. "The Avatar's house must be plagued with insects of some sort or flooding." And thus the carriage rumbled closer, with several men peeking out the window to get a better look, as another rush of water flowed out the open front door and as a young woman in blue walked out the doorway with a bucket in her hands.

"Spirits above," exclaimed the Fire Nation ambassador. "Is that who I think it is?"

"Pardon me," another ambassador asked. "But what is Master Katara doing?"

The official shrugged, watching the waterbender dip the bucket into the stream that ran along the estate and walk back up the pathway before stopping in front of the open door. The men watched in surprise as she set the bucket down, tossed in a bar of soap, and waterbent the soapy mixture into the house. The official gasped in surprise and had nearly cried out as she splashed water all over the floor. He had a strong urge to go up to her and scream.

Stop, he wanted to say, but he could only watch dumbstruck as the waterbender bent the liquid all over the floor of her house.

"We'll drive on immediately," an official said, giving the signal to proceed. Instantly, the carriage rumbled on with several men still stealing glances at the waterbender now on her hands and knees scrubbing the rosewood floors in the house.

* * *

Aang stood in the open doorway of the house and looked around in surprise. He knew Katara had mentioned something to him about cleaning the house, but this wasn't he had in mind. When she had said she was going to clean the house, he thought she meant just dust things off and maybe sweep the floors, something much simpler and less labor intensive than this. But Katara had moved all the furniture out and had given the floor a much needed scrubbing. She had washed the silk like curtains and had hung them up to dry and apparently, she had cleaned the chimney too because a small fire was blazing in the hearth and all the soot from the chimney was piled into a neat little heap on a rag, waiting to be thrown out.

"Looks nice, doesn't it?" Katara asked, suddenly emerging from one of the rooms and noticing the airbender was standing in the doorway.

"The house or you?" Aang teased, noticing that despite the soot stains on her clothes that normally would have marred one's appearance, she looked radiant. "Because both look great."

Katara playfully stuck her tongue out at him. "I meant the house," she said, tucking a few strands of her loose brown hair back into the neat bun coiled at the nape of her neck. "It took me forever to clean these floors. You'd think the houses here would be nicer than some of the others, but they're really not. The previous owners must have been slobs."

"Really?"

"You didn't see how much dust and dirt there was under that carpet," Katara said.

"Why is there a fire?" Aang asked. "It's the middle of spring."

"Oh that," Katara said. "The floors were still wet and I didn't have the time to dry them, so I just started a fire. The heat will dry it much faster than I can."

"Silly Katara," Aang laughed, dousing the flames with waterbending and using his airbending to dry the floors. "There are better ways to dry a floor."

"Well we're not all airbenders like you," she said, smiling. "And conveniently, you're never around when it's useful."

He smiled. "I know. Sorry."

She shrugged. "It's fine. You can make up for it by helping me move the furniture back."

He chuckled and followed her to get the various pieces of furniture that needed to be rearranged. After an hour, the house looked just as it had before, with the exception of being a lot cleaner.

"I'm glad that's over," Katara said, sitting down. She eyed the room with pleasure.

"I thought you enjoyed spring cleaning," Aang said.

"I just like being able to use waterbending in the house," she admitted. "Especially since it's not for cooking or something like that."

Aang smiled.

"Oh, I almost forgot," Katara exclaimed, brightening up. She disappeared into a room and returned with a rather large box. "Look what I found."

"A box?" Aang said, raising his eyebrows.

"It's all the stuff we saved from our travels during the war."

"You mean all the stuff _you_ saved," Aang corrected. "I don't think Sokka saved anything other than his Wang Fire disguise and I lost all the stuff I saved, which wasn't much."

"No, there's stuff in here I know I didn't save," she exclaimed. "Like this." She pulled out a handful of crushed petals.

"I didn't know I saved that," Aang said eying the crushed petals of the panda lily.

"There're all sorts of things in here," Katara said, rummaging through the box. "What's this?"

Aang laughed at the wrinkled green uniform Katara held up. "I think its Sokka's uniform from when he was training under Suki."

Katara laid it on the floor and withdrew something else from the box. It was a faded piece of paper with a crude drawing on it of Aang, Katara, and Sokka with a blob-like creature representing Appa in the background. At the bottom of the page, a small paragraph gave brief descriptions of each of them and urged locals to report anything they knew.

"You saved that?" Aang asked.

"Yeah," Katara said.

"Why?"

Katara shrugged. "I don't know. I just thought there might have been something in it worth using."

"But everything on that piece of paper is not true," Aang pointed out. "Unless you're a short, eleven year old girl from the Earth Kingdom who happens to a waterbender."

"Does it really say that?" Katara asked, scanning the paper. Aang pointed to the brief description about her and Katara's eyes widened.

"I wasn't short," she cried, indignantly. "I used to be taller than you back then."

"Not anymore," Aang grinned.

"And I wasn't eleven," she said. "I hate when people make up stuff about me."

"Like her," Aang asked, drawing out the _Boy in the Iceberg_ poster from their visit to Ember Island and pointing to the actress who had played her.

"I couldn't stand that actress," Katara said, making a face. "She was so irritating going on about hope and making those stupid speeches."

"At least you weren't played by a bald woman," Aang said, making a face. "That play was awful."

"You don't need to tell me. I was there, remember?"

"What's this?" Aang asked, diverting her attention. Katara glanced at the orange bundle in his hands and laughed.

"You don't remember it?" She asked, taking it from him and untying the strings that held it together. She smiled as she opened the small umbrella. "It's from that guy we met on the way to Makapu Village, Aunt Wu's town."

"And you kept it?" Aang wondered.

"Sort of. It's a look alike. We lost the real one after Appa got stolen and our bags were ransacked."

Aang laughed. "Is there anything that you didn't save?"

"Not that I can remember. I still have my Painted Lady disguise, and the Sapphire Fire one, and…the necklace you made me."

Aang stared at the old necklace and wondered how such a flimsy thing made from fishing line could have lasted so long.

"Let me guess," Katara said, before he could speak. "You're surprised that I kept it?"

"Not really," Aang admitted. "I'm just wondering why. I could have made a dozen better ones or given you something way better."

"I happen to like this one," she said, defensively. "Besides, you already gave me another one." She reached into the box and pulled out a different one that he had given her a few months after the war had ended.

"I didn't know if you would like it when I got it. I just bought it because it reminded me of you." Katara smiled, running her fingers over the intricately carved designs that resembled waves of water. "Besides, when you wear it, it makes your eyes look so blue, like sapphires."

"It's a beautiful necklace," she admitted. "But I prefer this one." She held up the old one he had made for her all those years ago. "Because you made it."

"Maybe I should have gone into the jewelry making business then," he chuckled. "Though I don't think Sokka would be too pleased."

Katara smiled. "No, he probably wouldn't be. It's probably not considered manly."

"Like answering to Twinkle Toes," he said. "Sokka said that wasn't manly and he answered to Snoozles."

"That's my brother," Katara said. "Oh, look." She pulled out two s paintings and set them side by side. "I remember this. You gave this to me for my birthday last year."

Aang nodded. "I didn't know what to get you, so Sokka suggested giving you a painting. I haven't painted that much before, but since it came out better than Sokka's, I figured you might like it. Then Sokka bet Toph he could draw a better version of the same painting and drew that."

Katara gazed at the second piece and shook her head. Aang's painting had been of a hidden lake nestled at the base of a mountain with a figure waterbending. Sokka's just looked like triangles and circles, though his rendition of the waterbender had been a little bit better. Still, in Aang's painting, it was clear that the waterbender was supposed to be Katara. In Sokka's, the waterbender just looked like a hybrid of Appa, Zuko, and some nameless creature that, somehow, managed to pass for a human.

"It's… unique," Katara said, pointing at Sokka's painting and the two of them burst out laughing. For the next few hours, they pulled out everything from that box, from sparkling jewels and gems to pressed flower petals and statues. Katara was shocked to realize that Aang had given her most of the things. She wasn't surprised (or upset) that he had, but now that they all lay before her she was shocked to discover just how many things he had given her.

"There's one last thing," Aang said, peering into the box. Katara reached in and pulled out a small glass figurine and grinned. "I'm surprised it didn't break after all this time. I should really take better care of it, considering all you went through to make it for me."

"It took me a day to make," Aang said, remembering how he had spent one day holed up in his room making the glass statue just the way he had been taught. "Monk Gyatso and the other airbenders used to do all sorts of things in their free time. Carving was just one of them and he happened to teach me so it wasn't too difficult. It's not a good likeness, though."

Katara inspected the statue in the light. The glass created a mystifying effect in the sunlight. "She's really pretty," she said of the woman in the statue. She was wearing an elegant dress with intricate designs and for the first time, Katara noticed that her long, glass hair had tiny glass flowers woven into its tresses. "You must have used a really pretty girl for this."

"The prettiest," he said. "It's supposed to be you."

If Katara hadn't put the statue down by then, she was sure she would have dropped it. "Me?" she stammered. "But I'm nowhere near as beautiful as this."

"I know," he said, inspecting the statue. "You're prettier and I probably could have done a better job if I had put a little more effort into it."

"Aang?" she asked softly, feeling slightly guilty for not giving him something in return. "Why'd you get me so many things?"

"I wanted to," he said, smiling at her. "They're like keepsakes."

"You must have spent hours choosing some of these things," she said, running her fingers over the surface of a brilliant glass flower.

"I did," he admitted. "But it's really your fault. It's hard to find beautiful things when they don't hold a candle to you. And I'm not just saying that to be nice."

"Really?" she teased.

"Really."

Katara glanced at all the mementos strewn across the floor. "I love all of them," she said, smiling at him. "But they don't hold a candle to the best one you gave me."

Aang looked at her inquiringly. "And that would be?"

"Your love," she said, kissing him. And as he wrapped his arms around her and kissed her back, she realized that, among other things, she had given Aang her heart and that perhaps it was a worthy keepsake to give him in return for all that he had given her.

* * *

_Thanks for all the reviews. You're all terrific! ^-^_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	43. Adagio of Dreams

_Finally got around to posting this. The idea is Love Struck Teenager's (thanks for letting me use it. I hope it's okay.) Enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I own nothing._

* * *

**XLIII. Adagio of Dreams**

_Hey, I wonder _

_How a dream looks_

~ Delta Goodrem, How a Dream Looks

She is dancing again, spinning at dizzying speeds across the silvery, glass floor that sparkles in the light of the full moon. A million stars hang in the sky, suspended like diamonds, watching her twirl with her faceless partner in time to the melodious music. She knows she is supposed to be having a good time, but something feels wrong. She wants to stop dancing, but the music commands her, pulls her on, and makes her dance like a puppet in time to the tune. So she follows the steps, spinning and twirling until suddenly her foot makes contact with something sharp and thin. A bone. And suddenly, the glass floor disappears from underneath her feet and she is standing atop a heap of skeletons. The music strikes up again and her partner pulls her forward, making her dance among the bones of forgotten people. Each step cuts her like a thousand knives and by the end of the number, her feet are cut and bleeding, burning with the intensity of a hundred fires. She wants to stop dancing, but her partner's grip on her hand is too strong. She can't see him clearly, standing in the shadows, but she knows he's far from human as his blood red eyes sparkle at her. She opens her mouth to tell him she wants to stop, but suddenly, he steps into the light and she can see his face clearly and she screams, but no sound comes out.

_Look, Katara,_ he taunts her. _Look at all those you've forgotten, who have died for the cause, for you. Dance with them, Katara. Dance. _And just like that, he vanishes taking with him all the gruesome skeletons but leaving her all alone. Gingerly, she takes a step forward and slips, feeling her body make contact with the cold ground. Something wet is splattered all over her and with a sickening feeling, she realizes it is blood.

_Do you see? _The voice asks, shrilly. _How can you dance when you know they died?_

She can feel the tears beginning to fall and she wipes them away. It isn't until she looks at her hand that she realizes she is crying tears of blood. The smell is nauseating and she can feel her head spinning, but the darkness doesn't claim her. Suddenly, she is catapulted to a completely different location.

Two figures hover over her, two nameless beings, their faces obscured by the blinding light that penetrates from some unknown source. One black and one white, sitting next to her. The dark figure reaches out to her and she recoils. But ever so slowly, it grasps her hand and she is surprised at its warmth and gentleness. The dark figure picks her up, but she cries out in terror.

The figure shrouded in light stands up then, and envelops her in its embrace. She feels so safe in the light, so at peace. The dark figure whispers softly to her, but she clings to the white one, the angel like one. She understands that the black figure will not hurt her, that he _cannot_ hurt her but she doesn't want to move. She feels so safe in the white figure's arms. The white one whispers something to her, sweet nothings she can't understand. And when he kisses her, her heart seems to explode and melt at the same time. She wants nothing more than to stay there with the white one, but the black one is angry.

When he screams, she cries out in terror and covers her ears with her hands. The black form wails and she shudders and breaks down into tears, though she can't say why. The white figure holds her tight and for a minute and everything seems perfect. But then he tears himself away and, kissing her gently, turns to the black one, huddled in a corner.

The light is gone now, letting the darkness seep in. She curls up into a ball, willing the abyss of shadows away, but they came after her. And when she cries out in fear, the white figure turns to her. He is by her side in an instant, driving the shadows away and soothing her. And Katara, for the life of her, can't figure out what was wrong with her. But she keeps sobbing and the angel keeps soothing. When she quiets down, the angel speaks to her, whispers one question over and over.

_Do you love me?_

She opens her mouth to speak, but no words came out. Only tears, tears of the reddest blood and she shrieks, covering her ears. She wants the terrible wailing to stop_. Why won't it stop?_ It takes her a few moments before she realizes she is the one emitting the god-awful screeches. And as her tears dry away, she notices the white angel like figure staring coldly at her.

_Don't you love me?_

_Yes._ She wants to reply, but words fail her yet again.

_How could you betray me? _The angel demands, turning away. She wants to scream for him to come back, but all she manages is to stare at him, her crystal blue eyes brimming with unshed tears. The angel turns to her one last time and plants his lips on hers. This time, there is nothing. All she can feel is her heart breaking in two as the figure's turns to ice.

The angel vanishes after that, and she is standing in the darkness, surrounded by a ring of fire. In the haze of the flames, she can see Ozai standing tall and proud, a smirk plastered on his face. He is taunting her, laughing at her and it hurts her so badly. With every insult he flings at her, the flames leap higher and flick towards her. Her waterbending is useless against his onslaught of fire and in seconds, she finds herself trapped in a corner.

_This is the end_, Ozai jeers, his amber eyes glowing like the fire he summons. As the flames rear up again, Katara shields herself, expecting to be burned to a crisp in any second. Much to her surprise, however, Ozai vanishes in a wisp of smoke and she is sitting at a table, watching a nameless beauty eat something. From some unknown window, sunlight is pouring in, drenching the girl in a golden light and she lifts her sapphire eyes to meet Katara's timid gaze. Her cherry red lips widen in a smile and her porcelain colored skin flushes red when she notices Katara gazing at the dish she is eating.

"Hearts," she giggles, smiling at the confused waterbender. "I love eating them. Especially the Avatar's.

"Why?" she whispers, looking penitently at the girl.

Her cherry red lips form a smirk. "Silly Katara," she laughs. "Don't you know that eating a man's heart means he'll be with you forever?"

"Can I have it, then?" She wonders, reaching slowly for the plate.

"No," the beautiful girl shrieks, snatching the plate away from her. "Keep your filthy hands off, you peasant."

"I'm not a peasant," she cries, glaring at the girl.

She laughs. "Look at you, Katara. What do you have that would possibly measure up to me? Why would the Avatar like you?"

"He's my friends," she shouts in response. "That's reason enough."

"Wrong," the girl hisses, stepping out of the light. She instantly turns into Azula and Katara glares at her, wishing she will just fall over dead. "I'm perfect and the Avatar is mine." she cries, gulping down the remains of his heart. Katara just watches in shock, her eyes wide with disbelief. She wants to scream, to use her waterbending on Azula until the princess is begging for mercy, but she is rooted to the spot.

In the blink of an eye, the walls around her suddenly fade, taking Azula with them. She is standing in a dark forest, face to face with a giant serpent, decked in skulls and flames, and she takes a few steps back, resisting the urge to gag as the serpent slithers towards her.

_Choose, Katara,_ it hisses. _You can only save one._

She looks up at the giant creature hovering in front of her and shudders.

"What do I choose?" she whispers.

_One of them_, it replies pointing to Sokka and Aang standing a few feet away._ Only one can survive._

"Why?" She demands.

"You know why, Katara," Sokka says sadly. "Just choose one of us."

She looks at him in disbelief. How can she choose between her brother and the Avatar?

_If you don't choose, _the snake hisses, _you condemn them both to death. Time is ticking, Katara. Choose wisely._

"I can't," she stammers. "It's too hard."

_Then you leave me no choice_, the snakes says. And just like that, Sokka and Aang vanish and the snake retreats into the darkness. A blinding light suddenly illuminates the dark forest and Katara shields her eyes as an apparition floats down to her.

_You couldn't protect the ones you loved_, Yue screams.

Katara just hangs her head as she feels the darkness close in on her. Something is whispering unintelligibly to her. _Fear not the dark_, the voices say in their raspy whispers. _Don't be afraid. _

"The darkness is my friend," she tells Yue defiantly as the blackness closes in on her. And as she falls into the yawning chasm of blackness, the last thing she sees is Yue smiling haughtily at her.

When she stops falling, she realizes she is on the dance floor again, dancing amid a heap of skeletons. Each time she and her partner step, she can feel the blood splash against her. Each drop cuts through her skin, revealing her bones, until she is nothing but a skeleton. And while a red moon shines down upon them, she and her skeleton of a partner dance away on a ruby red, blood-splattered floor gleaming in the moonlight and covered in the remains of forgotten people.

* * *

"Katara? Katara, wake up."

Katara opened her eyes to find a worried Sokka standing over her in the darkness of the night.

"Sokka!" She cried, enveloping him in a bone crushing. "You're alive."

"Katara," he choked. "I can't breathe."

"Sorry," she said, releasing him.

"You were having a nightmare," he said. "And what do you mean I'm alive?"

"Nothing," she said, hastily. "Forget I mentioned it."

Sokka just gave her a quizzical look. "Whatever. You have the weirdest dreams sometimes. Go back to sleep," he admonished, leaving her room.

"Piece of cake," she muttered, sarcastically. She wasn't going back to sleep if she was going to have that awful nightmare again. As soon as Sokka was out of sight, she slipped outside and ran as fast as she could to the nearby lake, letting the scenery around her blend into a colorful mess. By the time she reached the lake, she was out of breath and her heart was pounding, but she was glad to know she was very much alive and not dancing with some faceless man in a ghastly and disgusting ballroom.

A humid breeze whistled through the eaves and despite the warmth, Katara shivered. She stared at the rippling waters of the lake, rising and falling in the breeze and realized suddenly why she was outside. She was afraid of going back to sleep. She'd had her share of nightmares before, but nothing like this. If she closed her eyes, she could still see the skeletons lying on the bloodied floor and feel her partner's bony grip on her hands.

"That bad, huh?" Aang asked, coming to stand beside her.

Katara hadn't heard him follow her, but she wasn't surprised he was there. She tucked a few loose strands of her hair behind her ears and nodded. "You knew?"

"That you'd have a nightmare? No," he conceded. "But I figured you might."

"Why?"

He pointed to the full moon sailing across the night sky. "You told me that you almost always got bad dreams on the night of the full moon."

Katara sighed. "Yeah, that's true. But usually they're not that bad. This one was just…" She sighed again. "You should probably go back to sleep, Aang. I'm probably going to be out here a long time."

He shrugged. "I don't mind keeping you company. Besides, with Sokka's snoring, I don't think anyone will get any sleep."

Katara gave a small smile. "I wish I could get some sleep, but every time I close my eyes, I can still see those creepy figures from my dream and believe me, they're not pleasant."

"Yeah, I can imagine. But at least they're not real."

"But everything felt so real," she said, shuddering. "Especially the dancing."

"Dancing?" Aang repeated. "That's your idea of a nightmare?"

She nodded. "I was dancing with a creepy skeleton on top of people's bodies. And I wanted to stop, but I couldn't. And there was blood everywhere. I feel like I can still smell it."

"Sounds pretty nightmarish," Aang muttered.

Katara nodded. "And that's not even the worst part."

"What is?"

"I used to hate how dreams never made any sense, but I was glad in this case that mine didn't. I don't want to know why, but for some reason I was forced to choose between you and Sokka. Whoever I chose would live. But I couldn't choose, so you both vanished."

"That's…intense," Aang said. "But you know in real life it would never come down to that."

"Yeah, I know. But nightmares are always convoluted and they never make things happen the way they would in real life."

"Fortunately, the good dreams make up for that," Aang replied smiling.

The waterbender shrugged. "I guess, but I don't think I'll have any if I go back to sleep. How can you erase images that keep popping up in your mind?"

Aang grinned mischievously. "Do you want to do it the fun way or the easy way?"

"Is the easy way fun?" Katara asked, smiling.

Aang shrugged. "Maybe."

"I think I'll try the fun way then," Katara replied.

"You asked for it," he replied, airbending her into the cool waters of the lake.

"Are you asking for a bending battle?" Katara demanded, wringing the water out from her hair and gazing at the young Avatar once she had gotten out of the lake.

"Possibly," he replied, nonchalantly.

"You know I'll win."

"Of course you'll win. I'll go easy on you; there's no way you could win otherwise," he mocked. "I'm the Avatar. Winning comes naturally to me."

Katara gave him a skeptical look and they both burst out laughing.

"Out of curiosity, what's the easy way?" she asked.

"This." Aang replied, gently kissing her.

"You could have done that in the first place," Katara laughed. It was hard to believe how easily a simple gesture such as a kiss could fix things, but she found that the images no longer plagued her mind. Whether it was Aang's presence that had distracted her or what he had done, she couldn't say, but suddenly she felt so much better. When she finally fell asleep that night, she dreamt that she was dancing again, not with a faceless partner, but with Aang and if she listened hard enough she could hear the faint tolling of wedding bells in the distance. The following morning, she was inexplicably happy and when Aang asked her why, she just blushed and tried not to laugh.

"I just slept well," she replied, smiling serenely. "And I had a _really_ good dream."

* * *

_Thanks for all the reviews ^.^_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	44. Purpose

_Gah, what a bad writer I've been. I had this ready a while ago, but I was too busy soaking up all the good Korra news and I've spent the last few days just trying to find more to satisfy my curiosity instead of posting this. Anyway, this is ATHPluver's request. I hope it's okay (if it's not, you can blame the Korra crew for getting me sidetracked :D). Enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything._

* * *

**XLIV. Purpose**

_I was put here for a reason_

_I was born into this world_

_And I'm living and I'm believing, _

_That I was meant to be your girl_

~ Delta Goodrem, In This Life

Katara lay in a field of green grasses that danced on wind scented with jasmine blossoms as she gazed up at the sky. A few clouds floated lazily past her and she closed her eyes, basking in the soft silvery moonlight and just enjoying the feeling of being able to relax. There weren't many days (or nights) like this where she was able to just drop everything and relax so naturally, the minute she had nothing to do, she decided to do just that. Nothing.

Truthfully, she wasn't doing nothing. She had made several futile attempts to just relax, but her mind was more occupied with other matters. For some odd reason, she couldn't stop thinking about everything that happened to her. There was one question that kept nagging her: out of all the people who could have possibly found Aang and helped him save the world, why her? She certainly had no complaints, but if finding him had been chance, why had it been given to her? These matters seemed too deep to ponder about on a night like this, but Katara was curious.

She couldn't help but to wonder. If she hadn't found Aang, would they still have met? Or would she be nothing but a stranger to him, an unknown person he passed perhaps once or twice in his lifetime? The thought, as silly as it was, scared her. She couldn't imagine life without Aang. Even though she had known him for a few years, she felt like she had known him forever. Was it because they were so close or simply because she had heard about for as long as she could remember? Katara sighed. She didn't know or understand, but perhaps she was never meant to.

Katara sighed again and gazed up at the stars. It never failed to amaze her how she and Aang balanced each other out, like Yin and Yang as Iroh had once joking called them. But it was true. His calm disposition balanced her hot temper and her seriousness balanced his playful nature. But until the end of the war, Katara hadn't believed in soul mates. She'd heard people talk about it before, but she thought it was a bunch of nonsense because the people that often rambled on about it were usually the ones who seldom found their soul mates or who had multiple soul mates. But once the war was over and Aang returned after defeating Ozai, she thought that perhaps soul mates did exist, because she was positive Aang was hers, not just because they loved each other, but because she was sure she couldn't love anyone else.

Suddenly, she was glad that she had met Aang, because if she was honest with herself, she had no purpose without him. Without him, she would have long ago ended up wasting away her life, perhaps married to someone from her tribe. The idea seemed impossible to fathom and she shuddered just thinking about it. It wasn't as if living a life like that was bad; lots of young women were engaged at sixteen and lived comfortable lives after they got married, but Katara wasn't so sure she could stand the monotony of it all. She had been bored to death in the South Pole before Aang had come. Granted, all the eligible and able bodied men, young and old had left to fight in the war, seriously affecting the number of people she could have had a decent conversation with, but she knew that even if all the men had been there, she would still have been just as bored. With Aang, monotony and boredom was hardly ever a problem because they never stayed in one place long enough for her to get bored. And with Aang, she was doing some good, making a difference in the world instead of just being stranded in the South Pole. She loved the Southern Water Tribe and everything about it, but now that she had seen the world, she felt like she couldn't go back there to stay. And she couldn't bring herself to leave Aang. It wasn't as if she couldn't live without him, but when he wasn't there, she felt like something was missing, like she herself was incomplete. It surprised her how much his absence affected her. At first it had been, subtle, something she hadn't noticed, but as time went on, she realized that whenever he was gone, she had always been in a glum mood. So perhaps that was a reason people often talked about soul mates and perhaps that was the reason why she suddenly started believing in them.

Katara suddenly heard the grasses rustle behind her and sat up only to find a smiling airbender staring at her.

"You're still out here?" He wondered.

Katara nodded. "Yeah. I was just thinking."

"About what?" he wondered, taking a seat beside her.

"My purpose in life," she admitted.

"And that would be?"

"Being with you," she answered, simply.

Aang just laughed. "Katara, I think your purpose is to do amazing things, not just stay with me."

She shrugged. "Maybe. But I do amazing things because I'm with you."

"You know that's not…"

"Think about it," she cut in, interrupting him. "If I was stuck in the South Pole, there's no way I could have done anything. Even if I had traveled with my dad, I still wouldn't have been able to do much."

"You really think that's your purpose?" Aang asked.

"What else would be my purpose?"

"I don't know. Maybe being an excellent waterbender and healer or…"

"I only became a waterbender and healer because I was with you when you learned how to waterbend. If I had stayed home, I probably still wouldn't have learned anything but some really simple moves."

Aang sighed. "I still find it hard to believe you think your purpose is just staying with me."

"So I should just go back to the South Pole and waste away the rest of my life?" She demanded, angrily, her temper suddenly flaring up.

"You know that's not what I meant."

"No," she replied, still somewhat peeved. "I don't know."

"I don't think you were born just to stay with me," he clarified. "You were destined to do great things."

"Maybe I was," she replied. "But I was able to do those great things because I was with you. And I'm not saying I'm incapable; everyone's capable of doing extraordinary things. It's just that until I met you, I never had any opportunities to try."

Aang still looked unconvinced, but he didn't say anymore on the subject.

"It's funny," Katara said, suddenly. "But I just realized something."

"What?"

"Without you, I'm not really anything."

Aang groaned. "Katara…"

"It's true," she insisted. "I'd probably end up married to a complete stranger and I probably never would have learned waterbending or become a healer or travelled the world."

"We both know you wouldn't let that happen to yourself," he pointed out, grinning. "If you couldn't stand it that bad, you'd have run away or something."

Katara scowled. Sometimes, she hated how well Aang knew her. "Fine, maybe I would have, but still."

Aang sighed. He wasn't complaining, but it really sounded like Katara was just using all this to say they were meant to be together. But they both already knew that.

"Even if this isn't my purpose in life, I want it to be." Katara said, in a small voice.

He glanced at her in surprise. "You want it to be?" he echoed. She nodded. "Why?"

She shrugged. "Every time we do something, I can't help but wonder how I could have done it if I hadn't met you. I couldn't have met all the friends we made, learned waterbending and healing, learned to become a better fighter, helped all those villages, or seen all those places without you. And the truth is I couldn't have done any of those things without you. Without you, I guess I really would be just an average girl."

Aang was slightly taken aback, but he had to admit, there was some truth to what she said. He'd never really thought much about what his life would be like without her, because the idea seemed inconceivable. But if he hadn't met Katara, he didn't think he'd be the same person he was now. He was sure he couldn't be, because Katara balanced him out. They had always been like that, like two pieces of a puzzle. Neither could be complete while the other was gone.

"I still think your purpose is something better," Aang said, choosing his words carefully. "But if that's what you want it to be, who am I to argue with that?"

Much to his surprise, Katara smiled and turned to gaze up at the stars.

"I'm glad you didn't die," she said suddenly and randomly.

"Where did that come from?"

Katara shrugged, her gaze never leaving the stars shining above them. "I was just thinking about everything that's happened."

"You're doing an awful lot of thinking," he laughed. She shrugged again. "I have to admit, I'm glad _we_ didn't die."

"To be honest," she said, her gaze still fixed on the stars above. "If you had died, I think I might have too."

"Huh?"

"I don't think I can live without you," she said in a small voice. She said it simply, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world, because to her it, it really was.

"If you tried, I'm sure you could," Aang replied softly, unsure if it was the right thing to say.

"Not really," she responded. It'd be like Ba Sing Se all over again, she added in afterthought. Azula might have thought she killed Aang, but really two people had nearly died that night. Katara had nearly died that night too. One moment was all it took to change her, to shatter whatever happiness she had found and transform it into sadness. She hadn't been strong, or brave, then. She hadn't been anything more than a young, scared fourteen year old girl whose best friend was teetering precariously on the brink of life and death.

"You know," Aang said, suddenly breaking her from her train of thoughts. "You have a tendency to think gloomy things sometimes."

"Something I learned from you," she retorted, smiling. "I can't help it."

"What brought all of this on, anyway?"

"I told you, I was thinking about my purpose in life and somehow, it wound up with this. But I really am glad Ozai never won, because now every time I time I try and imagine what life would be like without you, I can remind myself I don't have to. After all, I have forever to spend with you." Katara said, smiling up at him.

Aang just smiled and kissed her.

"And sometimes I think even forever isn't long enough," Katara whispered against him.

"No," Aang agreed, ruefully. "It isn't. But at least we get to spend it together."

* * *

_Thanks for all the reviews I've received. You're all amazing ^.^_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	45. Parenting 101

_Okay, so with all the new Korra news being released, I thought this was a good time to post this chapter. The idea is PandaLily22's so all credit goes to her for this one. I hope it's alright. Enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar._

* * *

**XLV. Parenting 101**

"_Parenthood is a lot easier to get into than out of._"

~Bruce Lansky

Nighttime on Kyoshi Island usually found the little huts and bigger cottages blanketed in a layer of sleep. Most of the islanders were fast asleep, tucked into bed and dreaming pleasant dreams. All except one. Someone was awake in the little house on the hill. The night was unusually quiet for summer. Usually, the sound of crickets chirping, the rustling of the leaves, and the sound most nighttime critters made was enough to lull most people to sleep but tonight everything was silent. Yet, in all of Kyoshi, not a single light shone and not a single person stirred except the little girl who was wide awake and playing with herself in her room.

Aang awoke to a gentle kick and opened his eyes to find Katara curled up beside him.

"Your turn," she mumbled, sleepily, and Aang just rubbed his eyes. A warm, humid breeze was filtering into their room from the partially open window and a sliver of moonlight shone onto their floor. Everything around them was silent, save for the occasional rustling of the leaves. The shadows of tree branches bobbing in the wind danced across their floor and for a minute, Aang couldn't figure out why Katara had woke him up. But then a sharp cry pierced the silence and he understood. Stumbling out of bed and resisting the urge to tell his young wife that it was, in fact, her turn, he made his way to one of the two other rooms in their house. For a minute, he just paused in the doorway, rubbing the sleep from his eyes and watching the little girl but when her wailing became more pronounced, he picked her up and took her to the kitchen. A bottle of milk did wonders for little Ayako and her crying ceased altogether as she quietly sipped on her milk.

Aang had always thought he was pretty good with kids, so naturally, when Sokka and Suki needed someone to watch their daughter while they went away for a week, he had agreed. He didn't think it'd be so bad to watch a six month old baby and Katara was thrilled to spend some time with her niece. But it had only been three days since the couple had left baby Ayako with them and she was already proving to be a handful. Neither Aang nor Katara had slept well in nights and their bodies ached from carrying Ayako around so much. She was also depleting their food reserves. She was still relatively light for her age but she had inherited her father's appetite it seemed, because she ate twice as much as a normal baby yet never seemed to gain any weight.

Ayako finished her milk rather quickly and she looked sleepy enough to go back to bed, but the minute Aang set her down, she started wailing again so he tried to find other things for her to do. She seemed content playing with her toys and kept the airbender awake for another two hours, rattling her toys and shrieking with joy when they produced the desired effect. Her uncle for his part was trying not to fall asleep, but the prospect of getting back in bed and falling back asleep was inviting. Still, he resisted the urge to sleep until Ayako could barely keep her eyes open. When he put her in bed this time, she didn't stir. Aang partially closed the door to her room and stifling a yawn, shuffled back to his room.

"Is she asleep?" Katara asked, sleepily, opening one eye to look at him.

"I think so," Aang replied, yawning. "But she'll probably get up again in another few hours."

Katara sighed and closed her eyes. She was beyond tired, but she knew she wasn't going to get a proper night's sleep tonight, either. She loved her niece to pieces, but there were times when she wished that Ayako had inherited her father's ability to sleep peacefully for hours on end; Sokka certainly was good at that and he wasn't easily disturbed by small things when he slept.

Katara was able to sleep for three hours before Ayako woke her again. Their room was glowing in the hazy pink light of dawn and Katara waited a minute as Ayako's wailing stopped. For a minute, it seemed like she would go back to sleep, but just when Katara lowered her head on the pillow, a shrill cry pierced the silence.

"Your turn," Aang mumbled. "She probably needs to be changed."

"And fed," Katara added, yawning.

Aang noticed how tired she sounded. He knew he should have offered to help her but he was so sleepy. Maybe if I just sleep a little bit longer, he thought to himself. But it was already dawn and he was partially up and as sleep wouldn't find him, he decided to help Katara anyway.

"I'll change her," he said. "You just get her food ready."

"I'm going to kill Sokka when he comes back," she muttered, walking out the door. "And I don't care if it's not fair to blame him for this."

Aang just laughed before turning his attention to baby Ayako who was wailing all the more because her aunt and uncle were ignoring her. She usually wasn't like this, he noted, but she'd been crying a lot more since Suki and Sokka had left her with them.

Downstairs, the entire house was filled in the early morning glow of the sun that was just pushing up past the horizon. Katara had been so tired last night she hadn't bothered to draw any of the curtains. Ayako's toys were still scattered all over the floor and their kitchen was a mess. The remnants of the baby's last meal were still on the table along with some mashed fruit that Katara could have sworn she mashed two days ago. She sighed, taking in the mess. She hadn't slept properly in days and the effects were beginning to show. The house looked like a tornado had waltzed through, though Katara was sure even a tornado would have left their house in a better condition than it was now. Without giving the mess in the kitchen further thought, the waterbender dumped a handful of dirty dishes in the sink and heated up some milk for her niece. She had brewed some tea before going to bed the previous night and completely forgotten about it, so she reheated and poured it into two cups. By then, Ayako's milk was ready so she took the bottle upstairs and handed it to Aang.

"The milk shouldn't be too hot," she said, over the baby's crying. "Hopefully, it'll get her to stop crying."

"Katara, this isn't milk," he pointed out, holding the bottle up for her to see. "I think it's your tea."

The waterbender groaned. She had been so sleepy she hadn't been paying attention to what she was doing. She had assumed she poured milk in the baby's bottled, but Aang was right.

"It's a good thing you noticed," she said, taking the bottle from him. "I'm so sleepy, I'd have just given it to her."

"Maybe you should go back to sleep then," Aang suggested. Katara just shook her head and scooped up Ayako, taking her back to the kitchen and giving her her milk. Ayako was silent until she finished her milk. The moment it was over, she began crying again.

"Is she hungry?" Aang wondered.

"She couldn't possibly be. She just had milk."

"Then why is she crying again?"

Katara shrugged. "How does Suki put up with this?"

"Maybe she wants to play with her toys," Aang said. "She was fine this morning."

"I don't know," Katara sighed. "I don't think Sokka and Suki are going to ask us to babysit ever again after this."

"I thought you knew what you were doing," he teased.

"Sort of. I mean, I've watched over little babies before, but Gran-Gran was always with me. She always knew what to do. But maybe you're right. I'll see if she'll play if you wash the dishes."

"Hardly a fair trade," Aang laughed."But I'll do it."

It took Aang a good half hour to wash and dry all the dirty dishes that had collected into the sink. It really seemed like every plate, spoon, and fork they owned had been washed. And yet, in spite of the clean dishes and the gleaming sink, the kitchen still looked a mess. Aang was going to start the arduous task of cleaning it up, when he heard Katara cry out.

"Katara, are you okay?" he asked, poking his head out of the kitchen.

Ayako had a fistful of Katara's hair in her mouth and was drooling contentedly.

"She's teething," the waterbender replied, trying to pry her hair loose. Ayako just held on tighter. "That's probably why she's been crying so much. She needs something to chew on, other than my hair."

They found her a soft cloth to chew on. It wasn't much of a toy, but neither Ayako nor Katara were complaining. Ayako looked content so Aang and Katara just watched her play with herself and drank their tea. It didn't do much to stimulate them, but their niece suddenly did, interrupting the silence. She let out a happy shriek and laughed when Aang and Katara jumped, spilling their tea on themselves in the process.

"It things like these that make people not want to have a kids," Katara said, as they waterbended the hot liquid off themselves. "Sometimes, I think I'm crazy, because I still want to have kids."

Aang nodded in agreement.

"Sokka and Suki have it easy," she continued. "Ayako isn't a bender. They'll never have to worry about her bending abilities suddenly surfacing and wreaking havoc."

"We will," Aang said. "If we have kids, that is."

"Do you want kids?" Katara asked, tentatively.

"I do, but not just because I'm the last airbender," he replied. "Although that's more important to some of the smaller councils."

"It would be," she said, bitterly. She still remembered the Council of Nations approaching her and asking her to reconsider their marriage. They claimed it was because she weakened the chances of repopulating the airbenders, but lucky the Council hadn't been too pushy on the subject.

"We know it's wrong of us and likely a terrible thing to suggest," they had said. "But we're simply asking you to consider the situation carefully. It really is up to you. But whatever you choose, we will stand behind you."

That last part had surprised her because she had expected some opposition from them, but they had kept their word. When some of the officials from the other nations voiced their opinions, the Council had pointed out that coercion was not an option and that perhaps, the Avatar's engagement to a waterbender wasn't such a bad thing after all. Katara didn't like such a fuss to be made over them, but it was unavoidable. And in any case, the Council continued to support them. The last meeting they had gone to, the Council members had beamed at the pair as they commented on how well they complimented each other and how well they worked together. It was actually kind of strange to watch their transformation, but Katara definitely wasn't complaining.

"I understand why they said it, though," she said.

"I know, but if our kids weren't airbenders, I wouldn't love them any less."

Katara just smiled. She didn't doubt that at all.

"You think we'll make good parents?" Katara wondered, rubbing her eye with the heel of her palm. Ayako gurgled happily and attempted to roll over.

Aang shrugged. "I don't know. I'd like think so, but who knows?"

"How did airbenders become parents?" Katara wondered. "If nuns and monks were kept at separate Air Temples, how did they meet?"

"Honestly, I have no idea," Aang admitted. "It was probably one of those things the elders intended to tell us when we got older, but I ran away, so I guess I'll never know. Some of the kids claimed that they heard about coming together rituals and stuff like that where monks and nuns met for a few days and chose partners, but as far as I know, the monks and nuns never said falling in love was wrong, so I guess the rituals weren't the only way they got married and had kids."

Ayako released another happy shriek and continued chewing on the cloth. Aang was positive it would be in shreds by the time the little girl was done with it. She was chewing on it with such ferocity, the airbender felt glad the cloth wasn't an animate object.

"If we do have kids, what'll we name them?"

"I guess can cross that bridge when we come to it. After all, we'll have plenty of time to decide, right?" Aang asked.

"I suppose so."

"Just promise me you won't name them something like Huu or Tho," Aang said, smiling. "As much as I like our friends from the swamp, I don't think they have the best names."

"If, for some crazy reason, I do, then you have my permission to knock some sense into me," Katara replied, grinning. "So, what'll we do if they're benders?"

"What can we do?"

"I don't know. I just don't want little airbenders or waterbenders bending all over the place," Katara said. "When do kids usually show signs of bending anyway?"

"I don't know," Aang said again. "According to the monks, I was able to bend at a really young age, but I think most Avatars were, so I don't know if that applies."

Katara closed her eyes and laughed quietly. "Can you imagine little airbenders and waterbenders running around this house?"

"It sure would be something," he agreed. "We're probably going to have to be really careful with their bending."

Katara nodded, reaching out to tickle Ayako who smiled and laughed. "I'd like for our house to be intact, wherever we live."

"Katara, what are we going to do if something comes up and I have to leave to help Zuko or something?"

"I guess I'll have to stay behind then," she said, matter-of-factly.

Aang grinned. "You say that now, when you're being rational."

"I know," she consented. "And I probably won't be thinking rationally when that happens, but I guess that's another bridge we can cross when we come to it."

"I guess," the airbender replied, somewhat unsure. "But you know, it'd be more practical if you stayed home."

"Like you said, I know that now because I'm thinking rationally. I can't promise I'll be rational then. But you better promise to stay out of danger. I grew up without a mother. I don't want my kids to experience anything like that."

"Given who I am, no promises," Aang said. "But I'll try my best."

For a moment, they both fell silent and the only audible sound was Ayako sucking on the blanket and kicking her feet at something nonexistent.

"So, what do we do about traditions?" Aang asked, after a few minutes had elapsed. "Do we teach them Air Nomad or Water Tribe customs?"

"I guess we'll have to teach them Air Nomad traditions," Katara said, simply. "It shouldn't be allowed to fade with you."

"I think we should teach them both," he countered. "It's only fair and somehow, I don't think teaching our kids one or the other is an option. It'd just cause problems."

Katara smiled. "Works for me," she hummed, watching as Ayako craned her neck to peek at something imaginary over Aang and Katara.

"You think Sokka and Suki had to go through all this?" Aang asked, absently bending the air around him.

"I'm not too sure about Sokka," she joked. "But at some point they must have."

"I can't imagine Sokka having this conversation with Suki," Aang replied, laughing. "He's always been so…"

"Goofy?" Katara supplied, grinning. "Yeah, I know what you mean. But he's really grown up, even if he still acts like a kid sometimes."

They both burst out laughing.

"Aang?"

"Yeah?"

"You have to promise that if we have kids you don't tell them about bloodbending," Katara said, seriously. "I don't want them to grow up thinking I'm a monster or something."

"I won't," he promised. "But they won't think that; no one could."

"As much as I'd love to believe that, I think some people would if they knew what I could do."

"I don't think so, but if we're keeping bloodbending a secret, then we can't tell them about…

"We have to tell them you're the Avatar," Katara said.

"Of course we do, silly. I realize that. I meant we can't tell them about energybending."

"Why not?" She demanded.

"For the same reasons we're not telling them about bloodbending," he explained.

"But being able to bend someone's energy doesn't make you a monster," she countered.

"It's just like bloodbending," Aang said. "It scares me a little, knowing I can just take someone's bending away. Don't you think it might frighten a little kid?"

"It might, but I don't think our kids would be afraid of you using it on them," Katara replied. "I know you wouldn't and they'd know too."

"Then they'd know the same about bloodbending," Aang said.

Katara had to admit, he had a point. "I guess we'll cross that bridge when we come to it too."

"Looks like we'll be crossing a lot of bridges," Aang said smiling.

Katara nodded. "I suppose so." She sighed and turned to face Aang.

"What if none of our kids are airbenders?"

"Don't worry about it," he said, smiling good-naturedly. "It's not that big of a deal."

Katara just gaped at him. "What do you mean it's not that big of a deal? You're the last airbender."

"I know," he said, calmly. "And I'd probably be happier than I am now, and I'm the happiest person on the planet, if I wasn't the last of my kind. But there's really nothing we do to ensure that at least one of our kids is an airbender. Like I said, I'm not going to hate them for what element they can bend or if they can't bend at all."

"But I feel like we'd let the whole world down."

"We might let down a few people, but it's not like we made any promises or anything. I'm not saying I'm thrilled at the prospect of being the last airbender or anything, but fate works in funny ways and if the Air Nomads were destined to die out, I guess there's not much I can do and maybe there's not much I'm supposed to do."

Katara sighed. "Aang, that sounds amazing when you put it like that, but if there aren't any airbenders what'll happen to the Avatar cycle?"

"There wouldn't be another airbending Avatar for several hundred years," Aang said. "Who knows? In that time someone might learn airbending and pass it on. In the meantime, maybe the Avatar will just have to learn it from previous Avatars."

Katara looked unconvinced.

"Airbenders aren't the only benders gone," he pointed out. "You're the only waterbender from your tribe, remember?"

"Yeah, but it's not like I'm the last waterbender," she pointed out. "There are other waterbenders besides me and technically the Northern and Southern Tribes were one, long ago. So, no one's making a fuss about that just yet."

"Give them a few decades," Aang said. "They will."

Katara didn't respond. She knew he was probably right about the whole airbending situation, but she couldn't help the nervous feeling that stirred within her. She knew Aang had been serious when he told her not to worry, but how could she help herself? It seemed like almost the entire world was counting on her to bring back the airbenders. She could think of a few diplomats who were.

"Remember the meeting we went to last year?" she asked, softly. Aang nodded. It wasn't something he'd forget, given what happened.

A few months after their engagement had been announced, some of the diplomats called together a meeting in the Fire Nation. The Fire Nation palace was brimming with sages, officials and diplomats from all corners of the globe. At first, talk had centered on foreign trade and such matters, but eventually talk turned to center on them, more specifically Katara. Some of the diplomats weren't so convinced that she could help "repopulate the airbenders." So naturally, they suggested the "most practical solution" and needless to say, as it involved several other women and Aang, Katara wasn't thrilled. But she kept herself in check and waited until they had finished. Aang had marveled at her composure, because he was desperately trying not to unleash the Avatar State on them and make a scene, but Katara had no qualms with that, especially when one diplomat pointed out the Katara could always be a back-up should this plan fail. The moment those words were out of his mouth, Katara lost her temper. It was bad enough that they were making her privy to their plan but to call her nothing more than a back-up was insufferable. She'd frozen him up to his neck in solid ice, said she'd not tolerate being nothing more than a back-up, and stormed out after drenching him in ice cold water. Surprisingly, Hakoda hadn't scolded her for that, though he had watched the entire thing happen and Toph had started cheering sometime after the diplomat found that the ice was too solid for him to break through with his bare hands and Pakku had a smug smirk on his face as he waited for someone else to step up and defend the diplomat. She was also positive that Mai and Zuko had been laughing at the diplomat; the Earth King certainly was. And she couldn't be so sure, but she was positive Suki was restraining Sokka from chopping off the official's head because he hadn't looked too pleased when the official laid out his suggestion. The only person's reaction she never knew was Aang's because she had walked out before he had the time to say anything.

"Somehow, I don't think those officials would be too happy if one of our kids wasn't an airbender," she said.

"Honestly, I'm beyond caring what they think and anyway, after what I said to them at that meeting, I don't think they'd want to talk to me ever again, even if it is to tell them I'm not the last airbender."

"What did you say?" she asked, her curiosity piqued. "It couldn't be any worse than what I did."

Aang shrugged. "I wasn't thinking rationally then, so I said they'd have to kill me before I even tried something like that. And I meant it too. They said out of all the things I had done right, marrying you was the one thing I was doing wrong. I said it was the one thing I did right."

"That mustn't have made them too happy."

"No," he chuckled. "It didn't. But they were asking me to 'try my chances' with a bunch of women I've never even met and I told them it wasn't an option I was even considering. Honestly, if Sokka hadn't spent a good hour knocking some sense into them, I might have used the Avatar state and forced some sense into them."

"I know what you mean. I actually wanted to bloodbend them. And I might have done it too, but that'd just be one more reason they'd have used against me." She could still picture it now. The diplomats wouldn't be too pleased if they discovered what she could do with bloodbending. _You're too dangerous to be trusted with the Avatar's children,_ they would say. _They'd fare better with a different mother, someone who can look after them properly._

Just thinking about those crazy officials and their ludicrous plan made her blood boil. She was usually very tolerant towards people who called her a peasant and such, but she would not be treated as a back-up, as a…thing they could use to fall back on in case their plan didn't work. And luckily, she never had to be treated as one because to Aang, she never had been his back-up for anything.

"Are you still hung up over that?" Aang asked.

"A little," Katara admitted. "I just didn't think people hated me enough to suggest that."

"I don't think they hate you; they're just concerned about airbending being lost forever. I'll admit, it's a problem, but no one's complaining about Momo or Appa being the last of their kind, or how firebending has been distorted so it's fueled by rage, and how General Iroh, Zuko, and I are probably the only ones who know the true origin of it. And no one's said anything about Toph's metalbending abilities or Ty Lee's chi blocking abilities. Those are also important too."

"Point taken," she laughed. "But I still won't get over their stupid plan."

"Don't worry about it. If I wanted to 'try my chances' with random women, would I have married you?"

"No," She replied, smiling. "I don't think you would have." She sighed. "I really don't deserve you."

"I think it's the other way around," he said, laughing. "But it's too late to do anything about it. We're stuck like this forever."

Katara closed her eyes and rested her head on his shoulder. "I'm not complaining," she said, yawning.

"You know," Aang said, watching Ayako who seemed to be getting sleepy again. "If we have kids, it'll be like babysitting Ayako all over again."

Katara opened her eyes and smiled. "I know," she said, giving him a quick kiss. "But it'll be worth it."

They both fell silent after that. Neither one of them dared to speak as their niece started falling asleep. Once they were sure she wasn't awake, Katara spoke up.

"You know," she said, gazing up at him with her cerulean eyes sparkling like sapphires caught in the light. "You were wrong."

"About what?"

"About being happiest person on the planet. I am."

And as he leaned down to kiss her, Katara didn't think anything could ever change that.

* * *

_Thanks for all the reviews I've gotten so far. I can't tell you all how much they mean. Thank you so much! ^.^_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	46. Metamorphosis

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything._

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**XLVI. Metamorphosis **

"_Change always comes bearing gifts._"

~Price Pritchett

Summer in the South Pole usually meant lots of work for the young men and women, but Sokka found that it wasn't too bad with Katara and Aang helping out. It had a week since the trio had picked up Toph from Gaoling and Suki from Kyoshi Island and journeyed to the Southern Water Tribe and in that short time, so much had happened. They had explored every corner of the newly built city, attended Pakku's waterbending classes, given special demonstrations on their fighting abilities, told stories about their adventures, gone fishing, penguin sledding, attended several parties and even watched one boy's ice dodging ceremony. It had been an eventful week, to say the least, but now that things had wound down and there was work to do, Sokka suddenly missed doing all those things.

"Why the long face?" his sister asked, bringing him a hot cup of tea. Sokka took off his mittens and gratefully accepted the cup.

"I don't know," he said. "Now that we're back, I keep expecting something exciting to happen, like some other random kid will pop out of an iceberg and take us on a journey around the world again."

She smiled. "I know what you mean. Now that we've travelled the world, I feel like I have to keep travelling or else I'll die from boredom."

"That's not exactly what I meant," Sokka began, but he didn't bother explaining when he noticed Katara's gaze fixed on the horizon line. Her eyes had a faraway look as she watched a tiny fish boat being ushered out into the open sea by the wind. Lately, he had noticed her doing that a lot. It was strange, he noted as she pulled her gaze from the horizon and turned to face him, but she had been doing that for a while.

Only recently, Sokka had become aware of the changes in his sister. That night, as his family and friends crowded around the dinner table, Sokka reflected upon how Katara had changed. Physically, she hadn't changed all that much, except for maybe growing a little taller and a looking a great deal more like Kya than he (or his family) could have thought possible. But her personality had changed. He remembered a time not too long ago, when she'd been cautious about everything she did. Recently though, she was taking a lot more risks. And he'd never really pictured her as the adventurous type, but since returning from their travels, she'd done plenty of daring and adventures things, such as riding the elephant koi fish, which somehow Aang (and even Suki) had roped her into doing. Something else seemed different about her, but Sokka couldn't quite put his finger on it. It wasn't until the following day that he was able to figure out what was wrong with her.

Before they reached the South Pole, they had stopped briefly at the Southern Air Temple. Aang hadn't really been looking for anything in particular; as far as Sokka knew he was merely assessing how much work would have to go into rebuilding the Temple. But as he walked into the house after a morning of intense fishing, it was clear that that wasn't all the airbender had been up to on their visit to the ruined temple because Katara was standing in the common room clad in the yellow and orange of the Air Nomads. Suki and Toph were admiring her new dress, though Sokka couldn't understand how Toph could see.

"What are you wearing?" he demanded.

Katara grinned. "Do you like it?"

"Um…is that a trick question?" he wondered. He knew if he said yes, she might find it insulting since Sokka himself had declared that he had no taste when it came to dresses on girls or if he said no, she might be mad that he was insulting something from Aang's culture.

Katara just rolled her eyes. "No, it's not a trick question."

"Oh," Sokka said, relieved. "It looks good on you."

Katara beamed. "Thanks. Aang made it."

Sokka groaned. "First jewelry making, now dressmaking? Seriously, Aang, it's not manly."

Aang just laughed. "I knew you were going to say that."

"You should try it Sokka," Suki suggested. "At least then you wouldn't have to keep bugging me or Katara to sew your clothes."

"You know how to sew?" Sokka asked, looking at Aang incredulously.

"Sew, knit, and crochet," the airbender replied, smiling sheepishly.

"Seriously, buddy, not manly," the warrior said.

"You forget, Sokka, I lived in a temple full of monks. The nuns weren't around to help us. We had to learn to do that stuff or we had to go without clothes, which wasn't really an option."

"I can believe that, but learning how to make jewelry and stuff? Come on, Aang. Monks didn't need to do that." Sokka replied.

"Actually, most of the necklaces and other stuff the monks wore were handmade, so they did kind of have to learn."

Sokka groaned. "You're a lost cause. I give up."

"You should try one of them, Sokka," Toph said.

"The dresses?" he wondered, shooting her a incredulous look.

"I meant the Air Nomad outfits," Toph said. "They're actually really comfortable to wear and, nice and I usually don't use the word nice."

Sokka just buried his face in his hands. "I can't believe that I was hard at work while you were all playing dress up."

The others just smiled.

"We had nothing to do," Katara said. "I finished all my chores hours ago." She sighed and her eyes suddenly had that faraway look. "I wish we could travel again."

Sokka's eyes suddenly widened at that and a sudden thought struck him.

Several nights later, as they sat eating dinner, he told Hakoda about his new theory.

"Dad, I think Aang's turning Katara's into an Air Nomad."

Hakoda gave his son a puzzled glance. "What makes you say that, Sokka?"

"Ever since he made those Air Nomad outfits for her, she hasn't worn her regular clothes. I'm not saying that these new ones look bad or anything. It's just that…"

"Sokka, I don't think the new clothes are making your sister less of this tribe and more of an Air Nomad."

"I know," Sokka responded, diligently picking at a chunk of meat on his plate. "But these past few days, she's been getting really restless and she keeps going on and on about how she wishes she could travel. She always used to say she was content staying in one place. Now look at her. She's as bad as Aang. He was always the one complaining about being stuck in one place for too long, but his people were nomads, so he has an excuse."

"Katara's restless?" Hakoda repeated. He hadn't thought his daughter had an airbender's spirit; airbenders were known for their nomadic nature, after all. But perhaps there was some truth in what Sokka said. He had noticed Katara staring at the sea a lot more. She'd always had that same faraway look in her eyes, as if she was dying to get away and travel. He hadn't thought much of it, but perhaps she was becoming a little bit more of a nomad than he expected. Still, it was hardly fair to blame the young airbender for transforming his daughter into one. Hakoda knew for a fact that Aang wasn't doing it intentionally.

"As logical as your argument sounds, Sokka, I don't think it's a cause to worry," Hakoda reassured his son. "People change all the time and it's never bothered you before."

"I'm not worried," Sokka laughed. "I just find it…interesting and amusing. It seems hard to remember Katara as the little girl who wouldn't even get into the boat to go fishing, but now she'll jump off a cliff, which she has."

Hakoda chuckled. "I guess travelling around the world with Aang just made her more daring."

"And reckless," Sokka added. "You forgot reckless."

Hakoda laughed. "Has she become reckless?"

"A little," Sokka admitted. "But nothing too serious."

"I see," he said, glancing thoughtfully at his daughter in an animated discussion with Suki about something he couldn't quite hear. "But I still don't understand why you're so worked up about this."

"I'm not really," Sokka explained. "I just find it strange, that's all. I kind of miss the old Katara. It was definitely a lot easier to protect her then."

"I'll bet it was," the chief mused. "But something tells me you don't need to protect her. It seems like the two of you can protect yourselves and each other just fine."

"Yeah," Sokka replied, offhandedly. "I guess we can. Don't you just find it strange, though?"

"Honestly, not really," he admitted. "I'd find it a little strange if she didn't embrace Aang's culture."

"I guess you're right," Sokka said, sighing.

The following morning, he spoke to Aang about it as the two of them watched Bato and Hakoda go fishing.

"Have you noticed Katara's been acting strange lately?" Sokka asked.

Aang turned his gaze from the boats to the lanky warrior standing beside him. "She has?"

Sokka nodded. "Ever since we got here, she's been dying to get away. She keeps talking about how she wishes we could travel again."

"So?"

"So," Sokka replied grinning, unable to wait to see Aang's response to his upcoming statement. "You're turning her into a nomad."

"That's the craziest thing I ever heard," the airbender replied, laughing.

"We'll see," Sokka replied.

That afternoon, as they all gathered for lunch, Sokka presented his observations to the rest of the group. Katara was completely taken aback and slightly embarrassed when Sokka provided evidence to back up his theory, but she couldn't deny he had a point. She was becoming more like Aang than she realized. It wasn't necessarily a bad thing, but she wondered how long it would be before Toph, in classic Blind Bandit fashion, started teasing her.

"I guess I am turning into an Air Nomad," Katara said, thoughtfully.

"I _know_ you are," Sokka replied.

"How?" the waterbender demanded, suddenly very nervous about her brother's mischievous grin.

"Because you've got that airbender spirit like Aang said," he replied.

Katara just raised an eyebrow. "Since when?"

Sokka shrugged. "Since we went to the Northern Air Temple."

"You never told me you went to the Northern Air Temple." Suki said as Toph called Katara's name.

"That's because it wasn't one of our greatest adventures," Sokka admitted. "But now that you mentioned it, I think I know how to prove I'm right."

Suki just looked at him inquiringly.

"Katara?"

His sister turned towards him, momentarily breaking off her short conversation with Toph.

"What, Sokka?"

"Gravity."

Aang burst out laughing but much to his surprise (and everyone else's) so did Katara. She couldn't really explain why it was funny all of a sudden (because she hadn't the slightest idea why), but something told her that perhaps Sokka was right when he suggested she might have transformed.

"You're so strange, Katara," Sokka said, shaking his head at his little sister.

She just grinned. "I know. You're never going to stop making fun of me about this, are you?"

Sokka just smiled wider and uttered one word. "Gravity."

And as Katara started laughing again, Sokka couldn't help but wonder if she had been reincarnated and had been an airbender in a previous life.


	47. Heroes

_I'm finally back from vacation, but I'm still fighting jetlag, so I'm really sorry if this oneshot isn't my best work. The idea (and the chapter title) is actually Sylvanna's (I know, it's long overdue ^.^), so all credit goes to her for this idea. I hope it's okay (if it's not, I'll write a better oneshot). Enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything._

* * *

**XLVII. Heroes**

_"A hero is an ordinary individual who finds the strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles."_

~Christopher Reeve

A rather warm summer evening found the residents of the Fire Lord's summer house relaxing under the shade of a tree. The sun was slowly slipping towards the horizon and in various places where the sunlight didn't reach, a few fireflies emerged and began buzzing contentedly. A humid breeze was stirring the eaves, carrying several sweet scented petals on its wings before depositing them on a certain waterbender who didn't seem to mind as the soft petals collected around her. Beside her, a less than enthusiastic Mai was trying to ignore the scented petals that were falling all over her.

"Ugh, I don't know how you can stand this," Mai grumbled, brushing the petals off her dress.

"It's not like they bite or anything," Katara replied, laughing. She scooped up a few and let them fall between her fingers.

"I don't like flowers," was Mai's response.

Katara just smiled. "They say that no one can resist Panda Lilies."

"If anyone can, it's Mai," Zuko said, grinning.

"Panda Lilies don't even grow here, do they?" Mai wondered.

Zuko shrugged. "I don't know. I've never seen one. Have you?" He asked Katara.

"Sort of," Katara said. "Aang got me one from Aunt Wu's village but it was kind of withered by the time he gave it to me."

"Aunt who?" Zuko asked, blankly.

"Not Who, Wu," Katara replied, causing Aang and Sokka to laugh. "She was a fortuneteller we met on the way to the Northern Water Tribe."

"Never heard of her," Toph muttered.

"We stayed briefly in her village," Sokka explained. "Got our fortunes read, stopped a volcano, saved the town, the usual."

Suki, who had been watching the clouds move slowly, turned to face Sokka. "You stopped a volcano from erupting?"

"Technically, Aang did. But Katara and I helped."

"How come I never heard about this?" Suki demanded.

"I didn't think it was worth mentioning," the Water Tribe warrior admitted. "I mean, we didn't plan on finding a volcano to stop. It was completely unintentional. We just happened to be in the right place at the time."

"It's a good thing Sokka and Aang knew that it was going to erupt too," Katara said. "The villagers used to send people up the mountain to make sure that it wouldn't erupt, but since Aunt Wu's arrival, they hadn't. They relied entirely on her predictions..."

"Which were wrong by the way," Sokka interjected. "She said something about me being miserable my whole life, but I'm not miserable now."

Katara rolled her eyes. "She said most of your pain was self-inflicted, and it is." Sokka just muttered something incoherent under his breath.

"Sounds pretty exciting," Suki said. "Aside from Sokka's self-inflicted pain."

"Yeah, I guess it was," the waterbender said. "But Aang did most of the work."

"Did Aunt Wu ever reconsider her job after that?" Toph wondered.

"Not that I know of," Katara replied.

Suki just smiled. "It sounds to me like you guys did a lot of things unintentionally."

"I guess we did," Aang said, trying to count all the times they had helped people (unintentionally, of course). Now that he thought about it, most of the things they had done, they hadn't set out to do.

"We did a lot of stuff we didn't plan on doing," Sokka said. "Like saving Haru's village. Our plan was to just keep heading north, but _someone_just had to play hero and save the village."

"Sokka," Katara began, but her brother just grinned.

"Hey, lighten up. I was just teasing. You did a good thing, helping Haru get his father back."

"Let me guess," Mai said. "You started a riot."

"Well sort of," Katara admitted. "Once Sokka and Aang got me arrested for earthbending, I was taken to the prison and tried to get the earthbenders to fight back. It wasn't easy, but in the end, we managed to get them to use the coal as their earth source and fight back."

"You seem to have a knack for starting riots," Zuko said to Sokka.

"This was all Katara," Sokka said. "And in case you forgot, I never started that riot in the Boiling Rock."

Zuko smiled at the memory of Hakoda's unsuccessful attempt to start a riot, which resulted in Chit Sang starting one and escaping with them. Of course Zuko knew that _that _hadn't been unintentional.

"We've done a whole lot of stuff unintentionally," Sokka said. "Like when we helped those two feuding tribes cross the Great Divide."

"I think you told us about that," Toph said dully. "The Zhangs and Gan Jins who kept fighting over who was better and Twinkle Toes invented some story that they believed and got them to stop fighting."

"Now that I think about it," Sokka said, thoughtfully. "Almost everything we did, we did by accident, I guess. I mean, take the whole Painted Lady business, for example. We never planned to destroy the factory and anger the Fire Nation soldiers and…"

"_You_ didn't," Toph laughed. "But Katara and Aang certainly did."

The two smiled sheepishly.

"Or saving that village on Avatar Day," Sokka continued. "Or escorting that couple through the Serpent's Pass or…"

"I have to admit, I always thought the biggest accident we ever made was letting Zuko join the group," Katara admitted, interrupting Sokka's ramblings and earning a few thankful glances. "But I guess it wasn't really an accident, because a lot of good came out of it."

"I don't know whether to be flattered or insulted," the former prince sighed, eliciting several laughs from the others.

"Out of curiosity, what made you guys do all those things?" Suki wondered. "It's not like the fate of the world depended on it, so I'm just curious: with such a time constraint why'd you decide to do all those things?"

"It was mostly Katara and Aang trying to help everyone who needed help," Sokka said. "But I have to admit, in spite of all my complaining, I'm glad we helped all those people and did a whole bunch of things unintentionally. It feels…good."

Suki just smiled. "Never thought I'd hear you say that."

Sokka shrugged. "I'll admit I did complain a lot and I was completely against some of our plans, but in the end, I'm glad that I helped. When I was little, I always thought I'd be a hero for doing things like that, but now I think it's just nice to do things like that and be appreciated."

"You guys are heroes, silly," Suki said, laughing. "You think there're people out there who don't have a clue what you guys did?"

"Well there could be," Sokka said, grinning slyly. "You never know."

Suki just rolled her eyes.

"You know," Zuko said, thoughtfully. "I could revoke your status as heroes based on that insult Katara made."

"It was a compliment, Your Highness," she teased, bowing. "I wouldn't dream of insulting the Firelord."

Zuko barked a laugh. "I'd like to see the day you try not to. Between you and Mai, all I hear are insults."

"Then maybe you should surround yourself with different girls," Toph teased.

"My options are severely limited," Zuko pointed out, thinking of all the crazy girls who he'd met over the past few years. He'd been just as surprised as the others to discover he had a fan group, even if it was considerably smaller than Aang's or Sokka's.

"Doesn't it ever bother you guys being heroes?" Toph asked, suddenly.

The others just shrugged.

"Why do you ask?" Aang replied.

The blind earthbender shrugged. "I haven't gone home in a really long time and my parents have just been keeping in touch with me through letters. Based on what they write, it sounds like if I ever go back, I'll have to spend my days in the house or go out and pose for portraits, look pretty, make nice, long speeches, talk to the less fortunate and do all those other things I'd rather not do, They'll make me act like those stuffy old aristocrats we see every year at the Fire Nation festival. And quite frankly, I'd much prefer being who I am now than being forced to be a proper, young lady and attending all sorts of pointless social gatherings."

"When you come from a family like that, being a hero will suck," Mai said, bluntly. "When I went to visit my parents, my dad had already made a schedule of what I would do and when and believe me, it was not fun. But I guess, that's the price you have to pay to be recognized."

"I wouldn't know anything about that since I'm not from an aristocratic family like you two," Katara said. "But it sounds like you'd being doing the same thing anyway even if you weren't viewed as heroes."

"The only difference is that we'd probably be married to some jerk of a rich guy," Mai said. "And he'd parade us around as his trophy and we'd have to do everything he says."

"And that," Toph said, vehemently. "Is why I don't like being treated as a hero. Don't get me wrong, it's amazing sometimes, but more often than not, it's just a pain to be treated like that because we're obligated to do certain things."

"Luckily, I don't think any of us are too keen on being treated like that," Suki laughed. "So I don't think you'll have to worry about being treated like that."

"Besides," Aang said so softly only Katara could hear. "Going to all those pointless celebrations and showing up at all those events is a small price to pay for the reward I got."

Katara looked at him inquiringly. "And that would be?" she whispered.

"You," he replied, grinning.

"That's hardly a reward," she whispered back. "You had me from day one."

* * *

_I'm almost afraid to ask if it was okay. I'm still working on other requests, so hopefullly i can get over my jetlag and have those up soon. Thanks for all the reviews I've gotten so far. :)_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	48. Now and Forever

_This is ATHPluver's request, so all credit goes to her for this one. Enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything._

* * *

**XLVIII. Now and Forever**

_You're so beautiful. But that's not why I love you._

_I'm not sure you know that the reason I love you is you being you, just you._

_Yeah, the reason I love you is all that we've been through._

_And that's why I love you._

~ Avril Lavigne, I Love You

The weather in the Patola Mountains was always unpredictable. Rain came when it was least expected and on rare occasions, a thin layer of snow blanketed the tall, jagged peaks of the mountain range. At the moment, despite the threatening sea of dark gray clouds looming overhead, the sun was shining brightly, bathing everything in a warm golden light. At one of the lower plateaus that jutted out from the mountainside, a certain airbender was basking in the sunlight while examining an old scroll and glancing up at the mountain every now and then as if something wasn't quite right. The truth was, something wasn't. Based on his memories and the scroll in front of him, Aang knew there was a small sanctuary tucked away somewhere in the mountain and he was determined to find it at all costs. He knew that the chance of it being left untouched by the firebenders was very slim since Sozin's army had managed to reach all the Air Temples, but he wanted to try and find it anyway. The only question was, how one could find something that did not want to be found? But the answer was simple and Aang kept searching until he was able to make out the general region in which the sanctuary was located.

By the time he had made up his mind to journey higher up the mountain in search of the sanctuary and made his way to back inside the temple to inform the others, the sun had disappeared behind some clouds, and the Southern Air Temple suddenly looked gloomy and forlorn. Despite that, none of the others save Katara, bothered to stop him from finding that sanctuary. She loved exploring the Temple with the Avatar, but as she was busy, she tried her best to dissuade him from going and suggested a different day. But Aang promised he'd take her another day and went off in search of the hidden sanctuary. By the time he had worked his way outside and started walking towards the center of the mountain, Katara had, in typical Katara fashion, dropped all her work and rushed to join him.

"I'm coming with you," she said, breathlessly when he asked her what she thought she was doing.

"I don't think it's such a good idea," he admitted, hesitantly. "It's dangerous."

"Climbing a mountain is by far the least dangerous thing we've done," she pointed out, rolling her eyes.

"Yeah, but…"

"If you don't want me to come, Aang, you can just say so," she said turning around and walking a few feet away before the airbender stopped her.

"It's not that," he said. "I've never stopped you from coming because I don't want you to. But watch."

He airbended himself to a small ledge and, seconds after he landed on the ledge, the rock gave way, tumbling down the mountainside.

"I can't airbend us up there," he said, when he'd landed back beside her. "The rocks are too unstable. The only way to get to the sanctuary is to climb."

"I'm still coming with you," she said resolutely. "You must be out of your mind if you think you're going alone."

"Katara…"

"What if you get hurt and you need a healer?" She demanded. When Aang didn't respond, she smiled triumphantly. "See, I'll have to come."

"But what if _you _get hurt and need a healer?" He demanded, turning the question back on her. "Then what?"

She shrugged. "You're the Avatar. I'm fairly certain you can help a poor damsel in distress then," she replied, smiling.

Aang didn't look too convinced, but he was smiling and Katara could tell he wouldn't refuse her company so she wasn't at all surprised when he wordlessly extended his hand and helped her up the steep and jagged mountainside. Admittedly, the climbing wasn't easy and it took quite some time for them to get up to the ledge on which the sanctuary was supposedly located, but once they were there, Katara was glad she had come.

The ledge extended out several hundred feet, before giving way to a rocky precipice that plunged for hundreds of feet as far down as the eye could see. Here and there, the outcrop widened and narrowed as it circled the mountainside and Katara was suddenly thankful that Aang was there to help her navigate her way around it. But the view from where they stood was simply breathtaking. Despite the lack of sunshine at the moment, the place seemed to be glowing with some sort of light and the few plants that grew there looked remarkably green for flora that grew at such high altitudes. And looking down, Katara could see a great deal of the monastery and she could make out several dilapidated spires the looked to have once been part of the towers of the Southern Air Temple.

"So what do we do now?" The waterbender wondered, turning to Aang once her eyes had taken their fill of the landscape around her.

"There used to be a trail here that led straight to the sanctuary, but I can't find it. I guess we just look for it."

"This outcrop is huge though," Katara pointed out, noticing that the ledge encircled a great deal of the mountainside. "It could take a while."

Aang nodded. "And it looks like it's going to rain. Maybe we should head back."

"But we already came this far," she protested. "It makes no sense to go back now."

"We could always come back."

"But since we're here, we might as well as find the sanctuary, right?"

"I guess so," Aang sighed. He wanted to find the sanctuary more than anyone, but something was telling him to turn back before the rain came and head home with Katara. Ignoring that nagging sensation, the airbender pushed forward, leading the waterbender on. By evening, they hadn't found any trace of the trail and sat down to rest, partly out of defeat and partly out of sheer exhaustion.

"Next time I get the brilliant idea to come mountain climbing with you, please talk me out of it," Katara joked as she stretched her sore feet out.

Aang grinned. "You're stubborn. It's hard to talk you out of anything."

"So what now?" Katara asked, gazing at him.

Aang began explaining why he thought they should leave, when he noticed Katara plucking a rather plump, ripe fruit from a nearby plant and taking a bite.

"Katara, don't eat it," he cried. "It's…"

"It's not poisonous, is it?" She asked, suddenly very worried.

"No," the airbender replied as she swallowed it. "But you won't like it; it tastes like papaya."

"So I noticed," she said, making a face and tossing the fruit aside. She sighed. "Maybe you're right. Let's head back."

Just as Aang helped Katara up, the rain set in. It came lightly at first, but then it grew progressively heavier.

"I can't wait to go home and dry off," Katara said, making her way towards the path they had taken to get there, but Aang grabbed her wrist and gently pulled her back before she could go any further.

"We're not going down the mountainside in this rain," he said.

"Why not?"

"Too dangerous. The rocks are unstable as it is. I don't want you to slip on the way down and get hurt. You don't know how many airbenders have gotten hurt here."

"I didn't know that airbenders were injured here," she said, as they sat back down. She desperately wished there was some shelter nearby because she didn't like getting wet. She loved the rain as much as the next waterbender, but this mountain rain was cold and icy. It seemed to seep through her skin and into her bones.

"Not many airbenders came back unscathed," Aang admitted. "Most came back with a twisted ankle or something, but I remember seeing quite a few monks paralyzed. Still, for some odd reason, the monks were reluctant to abandon the sanctuary."

"Why?"

"I don't know," he conceded. "I'd asked Gyatso a few times, but he always gave me vague answers. That's why I wanted to find out. But I probably shouldn't have dragged you into this."

"I wanted to come, remember? You didn't drag me into anything."

Aang gave her a small smile.

"I'm sorry didn't listen to you earlier," Katara continued. "I just really wanted to come. I didn't even think about the weather."

"Don't worry about it. Besides, being stuck out in the rain alone isn't nearly as fun as being stuck out in it with you," he said, smiling at her.

"It must be hard to be here," Katara said softly, gazing out at the clouds from which the cold rain fell. "Don't you ever miss your people?"

The question seemed random, but Aang could see why she was asking.

"A little," he admitted. "But they're not really gone."

"They're not?" she asked. Aang could only laugh as she looked at him with eyes wide with surprise. "What's so funny?"

"You are," he chuckled. "You and Guru Pathik were the ones that taught me that, silly."

"Oh," she said, suddenly remembering. "So it doesn't bother you, being back here?"

He shook his head. "Not at all. It might have when I first came back here after 100 years, but not now."

"So, it doesn't bother you that we're here either, does it?"

"Should it?"

She shrugged. "Well, I don't know. Since you are the last airbender, aren't the four Air Temples your property?"

"I don't know about that."

"Either way, isn't this sacred ground; aren't the rest of us intruding?"

"Maybe, but it isn't necessarily a bad thing."

The two fell silent after that. The rain was still coming down hard and Aang had half a mind to use earthbending to create some sort of makeshift shelter for them so they didn't get wet, but as the rocks weren't very stable, he was a little worried that he might accidently cause an avalanche of rocks or worse yet, cause something to hit Katara. So the two of them just sat huddled together in the blinding rain and talked.

"Do you think the others are worried?" Katara wondered.

"Most likely. But I'm sure they're not _too_ worried. We'll be okay."

"You sound so sure," she said, smiling.

"Well, a little rain never hurt anyone. We might wake up with a cold tomorrow, but I doubt we're going to die."

Katara just laughed, but her laughter was drowned out as a loud clap of thunder pealed suddenly. Both Katara and Aang flinched as the sound reverberated across the mountain range. Despite how scary it was, there was something breathtaking about the storm. So the two lapsed into silence and watched as forks of lightning illuminated the sky and as the thunder echoed across the vast silence that hung around them.

"Doesn't it feel strange now that the war's been over for a while?" Katara asked, suddenly.

Aang nodded. "It feels strange not to have any time limits. Ever since Roku told me I had to master all the elements to stop Ozai, I feel like everything we did was a race against time. But now that Ozai's locked away, it feels weird not to have anything to do, but I'm not complaining."

Katara hummed in agreement.

"Out of curiosity," Aang wondered. "What would _you_ have done if we didn't win the war?"

"Keep fighting, I guess," Katara replied. "Although without you, I guess there wouldn't be much to fight for. The Fire Nation was winning anyway. You were the only thing that stood between them and victory."

"Even if we lost, I don't think the Fire Nation would have won so easily," Aang said. "They'd have met resistance somewhere."

Me, Katara thought, remembering all the dark possibilities that had entered her mind so long ago, when she contemplated what she would do if Aang had died. But luckily she never had to put any of those plans into action because they had won the war.

Katara stifled a yawn and wrung some water from her hair. "Years ago, if someone told me that I'd make you fall for me, I'd have laughed. But now that we're here, I'm wondering. How exactly did you fall in love with me?"

"I don't know," Aang admitted. "I just did. But I'd be lying if I said it's hard not to. It's just easy to fall in love with you."

Despite the cold rain pouring down on them, Katara suddenly felt very warm.

"But I'm sure there are prettier girls out there who must be like me."

"I suppose, but looks aren't everything, you know. I'd still love you."

"Even if I had fur and webbed feet?" She joked.

"Definitely. After all, it's what's on the inside that counts, right?"

"So, in spite of my temper and my tendency to be overbearing sometimes, I still managed to make you fall in love with me?" Katara asked. Aang nodded and she laughed. "If it was that easy I'd have tried it on some poor boy a long time ago."

"It is that easy," he replied. "Or have you not noticed all the guys who keep staring at you?"

"I've never paid attention," she conceded. "Because being with you seemed like more than I could ask for. It always felt so surreal. All I could think about was how lucky I was and I never really bothered paying attention to anyone I didn't know."

That sounds familiar, the airbender thought, remembering how the knowledge that his feelings weren't unrequited made him feel.

"You know," he said, continuing their conversation. "If you asked me the same question years from now, I still wouldn't have a better answer. I love everything about you, so it's hard not to love you."

Katara just smiled wider and kissed him. "If you keep talking like that, I'll be convinced I don't deserve you."

"As far as I'm concerned, you deserve the best. After all, I couldn't have done half the things I did without you."

Katara grinned. "I've always wondered," she said, looking up at the darkened sky. "In a lot of the stories I've read, whenever the hero confesses his feelings to the girl he loves, it's always raining and she's usually crying. I'll never understand how those girls can cry, though, if they have people as amazing as you telling them that they love them. It shouldn't make them sad."

"Maybe they're just feeling extremely happy," Aang guessed. "Some people cry when they're happy."

Katara shook her head. "I guess, but that's not how I felt."

"How did you feel?" he ventured to ask.

"You really want to know?"

He nodded.

"Weightless, giddy, relieved, the list just goes on and on. I was happier than I had been in a long time," she admitted. "I couldn't cry because everything you said just made me smile."

Aang was about to reply, but another rumble of thunder cut him off.

"What I'd give for a nice hot bath," Katara muttered, wringing more water from her hair and clothes.

"You're cold," Aang noted as he felt her shiver beside him. Now that he noticed it, he wasn't exactly feeling very warm either.

"I'll be fine," she said, giving him a small smile.

Typical Katara, he thought, shaking his head with a smile. She'd never admit she was cold because she knew she'd make him feel bad. His earthbending was useless on this rocky terrain and in such weather, firebending and waterbending was pointless. So they scooted closer together and huddled for warmth. After five minutes, Aang declared that he was going to find some shelter despite the lack of caves on the mountain and briefly left Katara's side to look for something that would prevent them.

When he returned, then minutes later, he was grinning. "I found the sanctuary. It's not far from here."

Ignoring the cold and the jarring of her stiff bones, Katara followed him carefully along the rocky path towards a cavern tucked away in the mountainside. The path wasn't easy to navigate, especially in the rain, since in many places the rock had crumbled leaving a series of ledges for them to hop across. But although they travelled slowly, they made progress until Katara nearly lost her footing just before they reached the sanctuary. Aang's heart nearly missed a beat as the rocky edifice crumbled and as Katara jumped on the ledge jutting out in front of the cavern.

"Am I alive?" She whispered as she clung to him, her eyes tightly shut.

"Yes," Aang laughed, reassuring her. "You're alive."

"Prove it," she said, reluctant to open her eyes and relinquish her hold on him.

He gently kissed her forehead and laughed. "Open your eyes, Katara. You're fine."

Katara opened her eyes hesitantly and breathed a sigh of relief when she noticed she was standing on solid ground. "If you're not airbending me off this mountain after that," she said. "I don't think I'm going down."

"You'll get over it," he replied, leading her into the sanctuary. "Just try not to do that again. You really scared me."

Once they had waterbended the rain off themselves and Aang had started a small fire, Katara was able to get a good look at the sanctuary. The cavern walls were covered in Air Nomad paintings and a small, empty shrine stood in the center. Other than that, it was completely empty.

"I'm sorry you didn't find anything," Katara said quietly.

"I wasn't expecting to," Aang answered. "Just sort of hoping I might." He sighed. "Oh well. Guess I'll have to try some of the other places."

"There are more places?"

"According to the scroll I found, there are. But we can worry about it tomorrow."

"Why tomorrow?" Katara demanded, yawning. "Why not now?"

"Because you're falling asleep," he teased. "And it doesn't look like this storm is going to let up anytime soon, so we're stuck here."

"That doesn't sound too bad," Katara said, yawning again. "There are worse ways I could have spent my day."

"Like?" Aang prodded.

"Like sewing Sokka's socks or that ugly dress that Toph's mother sent her. It looked so bad, even Momo didn't like it. But being with you is infinitely more fun and I'd rather be soaked to the bone in a rainstorm with you than sewing away by my lonesome self back inside," she conceded.

"Then aren't you glad I let you come?" He joked.

"Extremely glad." She nodded, yawning for the third time and closing her eyes and resting her head against the cool, earthen wall.

Aang chuckled. "Get some rest, sleepyhead. I'll wake you up before we leave."

"You better not leave without me," she said, opening her eyes to look at him. "If I find you gone in the morning, you're going to be in serious trouble if I ever manage to get off this mountain."

"You really think I'd leave you behind?"

"I know you won't, but it never hurts to throw in a few threats for good measure," she laughed. "But I know you won't leave."

Aang laughed. "Yeah, you're right. I won't leave. I love you too much to do that."

"How I made you fall in love with me, I'll never understand. But if it lasts, I'm not complaining," she replied, jokingly.

"I'll always love you."

"Always?"

"Now and forever." He laughed.

She smiled. "Are you sure? After all, forever is a long time."

"I'm sure."

"Works for me. Forever sounds good," she murmured, drifting off to sleep. Aang just watched the beautiful waterbender sleep beside him as the rain hammered away on the earthen roof of the sanctuary and as the thunder pealed in the distance. Suddenly, neither the storm, the long journey back down, nor the prospect of them both catching colds the following day seemed to matter to him. He was just glad that he had forever to spend with Katara, because at the moment (and perhaps every moment thereafter) nothing seemed quite so appealing as spending the rest of eternity with the girl of his dreams.

* * *

_Thanks for reading and for all the reviews so far! You're all amazing :)_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	49. Katara Writes

**-_- **_I have no explanation for this._

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything._

* * *

**XLIX. Katara Writes**

_Louder, louder the voices in my head._

_Whispers taunting, all the things you said._

_Faster the days go by and I'm still stuck in this moment of wanting you here._

_Time, in the blink of an eye you held my hand, you held me tight._

_Now you're gone and I'm still crying._

_Shocked, broken, I'm dying inside._

~ Kelly Clarkson, Haunted

The solemn scratch of the pen on paper was the only sound that echoed across the silence that filled the house. Despite the cold, chilly night, Katara sat huddled at her desk writing a letter by candlelight. The house was eerily silent, mostly because the thick walls of their home in the Southern Water Tribe muffled the sound of Sokka's snoring. And yet, despite the quietness, Katara wasn't at peace. Ever since Aang had returned to the Fire Nation (six years after the war's end) to take care of pressing matters, Katara had felt strangely empty. It was like a part of her was missing. So she'd taken to writing letters to him, though he hadn't responded to a single one. Perhaps it was simply because he was too exhausted after working for so many hours. Or perhaps he had never received them. She didn't know either way, but for some odd reason, she found herself awake almost every single night, pen in hand scribbling away as if the words on the parchment would make all the difference in the world.

It was early morning when Katara awoke again. She had fallen asleep at her desk, leaving her letter unfinished. A rather bulky package was sitting on her desk and rubbing the sleep from her eyes, she opened it, surprised to find every single letter she had written to Aang neatly bound together in a book-like format. She must have sent hundreds of letters, more than she could keep track of. And now, each of those letters was sitting on her desk, his reply neatly printed on the back. And as she slowly began reading through some of them, she wondered what on earth had prompted the airbender to send the replies when she had been sending letters for over a year now and he hadn't bothered to respond in the past.

* * *

_Aang,_

_It seems so strange since you left. The South Pole is really boring without you. Sokka says you and Zuko are making progress on solving all those petty international squabbles. Please come back before I die of boredom. I miss you._

_Love, Katara_

_Katara,_

_It's really boring in the Fire Nation too. I wish I was back in the South Pole with you and Sokka. Even fishing for Sokka's nonexistent fish is much more fun than anything Zuko and I have to do. I miss you too, but I'll be back soon. _

_Love, Aang_

* * *

_Well, Aang, it's been two months since you've gone and in that time, I've sent at least two dozen letters and you've never responded. I can't help but wonder, if you have forgotten me already?_

_Love, Katara_

_I'll forget you when I forget how to breathe._

_Love, Aang_

* * *

_It's been a while, hasn't it? Is it bad that I keep hearing voices in my head? They won't stop._

_Katara_

_I hear voices too. Yours. And thankfully, it never stops._

_Aang_

* * *

_Are you mad at me, Aang? Is that why you haven't responded to a single letter of mine? Or have I been bothering you? I'm sorry if I have, I won't send anymore letters. I promise._

_Katara_

_I'm not mad and your letters never bother me. Please don't stop sending them._

_Aang_

* * *

_I know I promised I wouldn't send anymore letters, but I can't help it. So, as long as you won't reply, I'll keep sending them. You probably don't read them anyway. _

_Katara_

_I've read every single letter, Katara. I've read them over and over again, sometimes. I might even have parts of them memorized. _

_Aang_

* * *

_It's been a long time, Aang. Four months, two weeks, and six days. Is it sad that I've been counting?_

_Katara_

_It's been four months, two weeks, six days, fourteen hours, and eight minutes. Is it sad that I've been counting?_

_Aang_

* * *

_Come back soon, Aang. I can't stand the boredom. And I'm starting to forget the sound of your voice, how you laughed, and smiled…Don't you ever miss me?_

_All the time, Katara. More than you could possibly know._

* * *

_If I said I kept dreaming about you, would you think I'm insane?_

_Not at all, Katara. I dream about you all the time._

* * *

_Sokka says I'm miserable because I'm broken. Honestly, I'm so tired, I don't even know how I feel. Am I broken, Aang? _

_Katara never breaks._

* * *

_If I'm broken, Aang, will you fix me?_

_You don't break easily._

* * *

_If I'm broken, you'll _have_ to fix me. Will you?_

_Yes._

* * *

_I went to the market today and met a crazy old man. He thought I belonged to you. Does it bother you that I want to?_

_Should it?_

* * *

_I think I've fallen. Is it pathetic that I keep sending you letters you never read?_

_You haven't fallen, you're not pathetic, and I read every single letter you send._

* * *

_My name is Katara. Just in case you forgot._

_I love you. I know it probably doesn't mean much right now, but I thought I'd let you know anyway. And I didn't forget._

* * *

_Should I even bother asking if you think me?_

_Yes, because the answer is every minute of every day._

* * *

_It's the weekend. Again. A visit would be nice. But I'm starting to think it's too much to hope for._

_If the fate of the world's agricultural trade wasn't at stake, I'd drop everything and go back. But there are idiots here who don't understand that the Firelord and Avatar might actually have other things to do and they're doing a great job of keeping me and Zuko busy. I miss you, Katara._

* * *

_It's been forever. Everyone thinks I'm insane for writing letters to you, Aang. _

_I'm sorry._

* * *

_It's me again. Katara. The Water Tribe girl who was…is…hopelessly in love with you. I guess it's a good thing you never read these letters, because I don't think I could ever say some of these things to you in person._

_I still love you._

* * *

_It's been a while, hasn't it? You know, someone proposed._

_To you? Congratulations._

* * *

_What would you say if I told you I'm engaged?_

_Are you? Because then I'd say I'm not surprised and congrats._

* * *

_I'm engaged._

_I'm not surprised. Congrats, Katara._

* * *

_I lied, Aang. I'm sorry; it was a moment of weakness. I was never engaged. What does a girl have to do to get you to visit?_

_You don't have to apologize. And I'd do anything to see you again._

* * *

_People are starting to think you left me, Aang. I keep telling them you didn't. Aren't you going to prove them wrong?_

_Of course._

* * *

_You're coming to the South Pole, Aang. It's not an option._

_If you want a detailed blueprint of the Fire Nation palace to come rescue me, you better tell me soon so I can have it sent to you in time._

* * *

_So, you're not coming back, then? Well, then I guess there's no need for me to keep sending such short letters. I guess I'm crazy enough to still wait around for you, but don't expect waterworks when you come back._

_I don't._

* * *

_This is the last letter, I suppose. Take care, Aang. If you expect to see a broken-hearted girl sitting around and crying for you, then you're mistaken. I'm not crying and I'm not broken-hearted. Maybe someday, I'll tell you why._

_I think I know why. Take care, Katara._

* * *

_I will not break easily. And I still love you. Just thought you should know._

_I do know._

* * *

_I just have one last question. Will you ever respond to my letters?_

_Yes, but I don't think I'll mail my letters back. Ask me why later._

* * *

Katara shut the book and started at it quizzically. "Why?" she wondered in response to his last statement, and though she didn't expect an answer, she was very surprised when she got one.

"Because letters weren't good enough." From a dark corner that the early morning sunlight didn't reach, Aang emerged and Katara just smiled triumphantly. She didn't even to bother to ask why the airbender was suddenly standing in her room or who let him in.

"About time you came back," she said, laughing. "I was beginning to think you'd forgotten everyone but Zuko."

"Didn't you read any of my letters?" he wondered in response.

Katara nodded. He'd said he would forget her when he forgot how to breathe. And she believed him.

"I'm curious, though," she admitted. "What was the point of this?"

"You'll never believe how crazy some of these people are. Everything Zuko and I did was in response to some stupid problem with a simple solution. I thought I'd be done with all the work soon, so I thought instead of mailing back my reply to your letter, I'd give it to you in person, but that didn't exactly work out. But I never stopped trying, which is how I ended up with that," he said, pointing to the stack of letters. "Every time you sent a letter, I thought I could deliver the reply in person, but they just sort of collected. But I'm back now."

Katara nodded. "Did you really read all of my letters?"

"Every single one."

She blushed. "You must have thought I was insane."

He shook his head, smiling. "No, I didn't. But they weren't very helpful, you know. I swear, I might just have dropped everything and come back if Zuko didn't really need the help."

Katara grinned. "That was the idea, but clearly, it didn't work."

And they both burst out laughing.

"I meant everything I said in my letters," Katara said, shamelessly, after their laughter had subsided. "I really missed you and it was ridiculously boring with just Sokka around."

"I can imagine. But don't worry," he assured her. "Avatar or not, the next time there's some petty international dispute, I'm not leaving you."

Katara smiled. That sounded wonderful. "Are you allowed to do that?"

"I think so. I'm supposed to keep balance, but if it means settling fights over fruits or something, the people can wait for the next Avatar to do that or solve it themselves."

She laughed. "You know, though I probably should be mad at you for not responding to any of my letters, I'm too happy to care. I'm just glad that you're back."

"Me too," he replied.

And as the distance between them vanished and he kissed her, Katara thought that perhaps this was much better than any reply Aang could have written.

* * *

_Thanks for reading. I hope it wasn't too confusing. And thank you so much for all the reviews I've gotten so far. :)_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	50. The Promise of a New Beginning

_I was working on a request when I found this on my computer. I figured I'd post it as a filler until I finish the request. Enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own ATLA_

* * *

**L. The Promise of a New Beginning**

_I can see the two of us together  
I know I'm gonna be with you forever  
Love couldn't be any better_

~ Shania Twain, When You Kiss Me

Holidays, Katara realized, were quite important in Earth Kingdom. They were important everywhere she supposed, but none of the other nations celebrated holidays like the Earth Kingdom. Since the short time she and Sokka returned to the Earth Kingdom from the South Pole, the Earth King had already thrown two parties, the aristocrats had hosted four balls and had held several banquets. They weren't just for major holidays either. Local festivals and certain days such as harvest days warranted the need for a celebration. Earth Kingdom citizens loved to celebrate and Katara wished that she could have seen some of their traditions sooner because when it came down to it, the Earth Kingdoms citizens really knew how to host a party and celebrate.

Their preparations and festivities for the New Year were certainly no exception. Katara could have sworn the entire month passed like that. Between going to parties and helping the Earth King prepare for the New Year party that he was more or less obligated to throw, she felt like she didn't have the time to sit down. But luckily, the party was a huge success. She honestly didn't think many people would show up because the party was held two days before New Year's Day, but it seemed like all the people in Ba Sing Se and the surrounding villages had come to celebrate. The entire night passed in the blink of an eye and though Katara enjoyed herself immensely, she was glad when the party was finally over so she could return home, relax, and spend the holidays with her friends.

The following morning, on the eve of the New Year, everyone was up bright and early, including Sokka who claimed the smell of Suki's aromatic cooking had woke him up. Surprisingly, the entire house was decorated, much like the other houses in the Upper Ring and Katara could only stare at the decorations hanging everywhere. Paper lanterns and designs hung from the rafters and candles were lit everywhere despite it being morning.

"What?" Sokka asked, noticing her surprised gaze. "It looks bad?"

"No," she admitted. "They're beautiful."

"You have Sokka to thank for that," Toph said. "He's been giving us orders on how to decorate since he rolled off his bed this morning."

"I didn't know he could decorate," Katara said.

"There's a lot you don't know about me, little sister," Sokka replied, grinning. "Sometimes, I surprise myself." He chuckled and Katara shook her head smiling.

"So what's going on in there?" Katara asked, pointing to the kitchen where Suki was cooking up a storm.

"Well, Iroh said he might come over to join us and Zuko and Mai are coming so…"

"Wait, they're coming all the way from the Fire Nation?"

"No, they're staying with Iroh for the week," Sokka said. "Anyway, they said they'd drop by and Iroh said they'd stay for dinner so Suki's making extra."

"Maybe I should help," Katara said, watching the Kyoshi warrior cook.

"Are you planning on feeding eight people or an army?" Toph wondered. "Suki's probably cooked enough food by now to last a week."

Katara smiled. "Fine. I don't mind not cooking. Where's Aang?"

"He went to the market," Sokka mentioned. "Something about getting some stuff to make fruit pies or something like that."

"Maybe I'll help him," she said, thoughtfully.

"Just be back soon." Sokka said, as his sister disappeared out the front door.

The market in Ba Sing Se was milling with people and Katara was surprised to see how colorfully all the stalls were decorated. Every vendor had decked his or her stall in a dazzling array of colors and the waterbender spent a good hour just looking at all the decorations instead of trying to find Aang. It was strange, she noted, how the Water Tribes didn't use much color in their celebrations. Most people dressed in various shades of blue and the decorations were almost always blue or made of ice. She supposed it had to do with the lack of resources available; living in either of the poles didn't allow for much color in celebration. But Water Tribe celebrations were stunning nonetheless and she was glad she had been exposed to all types of customs and traditions.

It was evening before she knew it and hurrying home, Katara realized she hadn't even looked for the airbender while she was at the market. He was probably already back home by now and she felt slightly guilty for not attempting to look, but Ba Sing Se boasted an enormous market and with so much to see and do, it was quite easy to get sidetracked. In any case, she didn't think the others would be too upset. After all, they were occupied with other things and were probably too busy to care.

By the time she returned home, a multihued twilight had descended upon the city and houses everywhere slowly began to glow with the light of candles. Their house itself was bathed in a soft golden light and from outside, Katara could make out Suki's figure lighting all the candles within the house. Sokka was talking to Zuko and Iroh in the backyard and staring suspiciously at an unopened crate that the General had brought with him. As much as Katara wanted to know what was in that large crate, she put her curiosity aside and went to find Aang.

She found him feeding Appa. The sky bison looked content, munching on its hay and turned its massive head when Katara approached. He gave a dull roar, but Katara swore she saw him smiling at her.

"You've been gone an awfully long time," Aang said, smiling at her. "Where've you been?"

"In the market," she replied. "I was going to find you, but I got sidetracked. Before I knew it, it was evening so I came here. And on my way a really nice merchant gave me these." She fished out several firecrackers from her pocket and held them up for him to see.

"I didn't know people lit firecrackers here," he said. From somewhere in the distance, he could hear a loud bang followed by a red and green glow.

"I don't think they're firecrackers," she replied. "The merchant called them something else."

"Then what are they?"

"I don't know. Try one."

Aang looked at her hesitantly. "I'm not so sure that's a good idea."

"You're not still afraid about hurting me. Are you?" Katara wondered.

"No, but using my firebending to light one of these might not be safe. Besides, I don't want to accidently blow us up."

Katara laughed. "I don't think that would happen."

"You never know."

"Can't you just try one?" She pleaded.

"Fine." He conceded, taking her hand and leading her away from Appa and the others talking. He took one and lit it carefully. There was a loud bang before the sky above them was illuminated with colors. Aang cast a sidelong glance at Katara and chuckled. He didn't know what was brighter, the fireworks or the way her eyes sparkled as the colors lit the night sky. Of course he didn't have too long to ponder because suddenly the others were beside them, demanding to know how Katara had gotten a hold of the firecrackers and if they could have some.

"You never told us you got them," Sokka said. "I haven't seen one of these in forever."

"It's really common here in Ba Sing Se. I just brought a whole crate full," Iroh said, pointing to the box resting a few feet away.

"You did?"

Iroh nodded and lifted the lid to reveal firecrackers neatly arranged in the box. Sokka grinned and suddenly, Katara thought he looked like a little child and not the young man that he was.

"Can we light those?" he wondered.

"No," Mai responded, sarcastically. "They're just for show." Sokka scowled at her and she gave him a small smile. "What do you think they're for?"

"I should warn you," Iroh said, taking the ones Katara had gotten from the market and passing them around. "They're quite addicting. Once you light one, you can't help but light a dozen more."

"I can see why," Suki said, lighting hers with a match. "They're beautiful to look at."

"Just a lot of loud noise to me," Toph said. "But hey, at least you guys enjoy it."

"Mine won't light," Sokka said, watching as the others around him lit theirs. "Stupid firecracker." He tossed it to the side, but it landed softly in the crate and Sokka tried another, unaware that he had in fact lit the previous.

"They're so beautiful," Katara said, watching as several other fireworks lit the sky in the distance. "I'm surprised more people aren't lighting any."

Iroh laughed. "Don't worry. There will be plenty more fire…"

He was cut off by the loudest bang yet, making everyone jump (and in Sokka's case shriek) and making Katara latch on to Aang. Behind them, the crate of firecrackers exploded and the sky was illuminated with sparks of every imaginable color. For several minutes, the sky was flooded with all sorts of formations and everyone just watched, mesmerized. Sokka was about to apologize for his mistake, but judging by the looks on everyone's face, he didn't think they were too angry.

"Is is over?" Zuko asked some time later, looking at his uncle.

Iroh shook his head, smiling. Several other families had lit their own firecrackers and once again the sky was aglow with color and several paper lanterns drifted on the gentle breeze. From where they were, they could hear the faint tolling of bells signaling the start of the New Year.

"Happy New Year," Iroh exclaimed. "Now, who wants jasmine tea?"

Zuko looked at everyone and grinned. "I think you'd better make some for everyone, uncle."

Iroh just smiled wider and rushed inside, with a rather bored Toph following close behind.

"A clean slate and a whole new beginning," Sokka sighed. "Man, I love New Years."

Katara just laughed. "You just love New Years because you get to eat all your favorite food."

"Well, then, why do you like it?" her brother demanded.

"For a number of reasons," she replied simply. But mainly because the advent of the New Year meant a whole new year she could spend with Aang.

"Happy New Year," Katara whispered to Aang. He responded by kissing her. And even though Sokka was muttering something under his breath, Aang wasn't too worried about the year that lay ahead of them. He had Katara, and she was all he'd ever need.

* * *

_Thanks for all the reviews I've gotten so far. You're all wonderful! ^^_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	51. To Ask

_This oneshot is long overdue. I was too busy updating Is This Real Enough For You, so it took me a little longer to write this one, but I hope it's okay. The idea is PandaLily22's so all credit goes to her. Enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own ATLA (but I still wish I did :D)_

* * *

**LI. To Ask**

_The only cure for love is marriage._

~Irish proverb

"Well," Hakoda asked, gazing at Aang and Katara. "What do you think?"

The two exchanged glances before looking at the Chief of the Southern Water Tribe.

"About what, Dad?" Katara demanded. Sokka, who was standing behind her, just smiled.

"The location, of course."

"It's… nice," Aang ventured. "But there's nothing here."

"Precisely," Hakoda replied, laughing at the confused expressions on Aang and Katara's faces. "It's the perfect spot for a house, don't you think?"

"I guess," Aang replied.

"Why would we need a house here though when our house is just a few feet away?" Katara wondered.

"Well, Aang spends so much time here so Dad and I figured he might as well as make his own house," Sokka said, grinning. "What do you think?"

"A house?" Aang repeated. "For me?"

Sokka nodded. "I didn't think you'd say no, so I took the liberty of making blueprints."

He handed Aang a sheet of paper.

"Why are there so many rooms?"

Sokka grinned. "You're the Avatar. Don't Avatars normally have a big house?"

"Not really. Roku and Kyoshi didn't."

"Well then you can be unique," Sokka replied shrugging.

"What's this room?" Aang wondered, pointing to one of the larger drawings on the paper.

"Oh that? That's my room."

Aang just blinked and Katara cast her brother an incredulous look.

"You're kidding right?" she demanded. "You've already got a house; three to be exact."

"Three?" Aang and Hakoda asked in unison.

"Yeah. Suki gave him a cottage on Kyoshi Island, then there's the one he built when we came back from the war, and our house."

"Okay, maybe I do, but you have to admit, I'm not on Kyoshi very often and the house I built is a complete disaster. I spent a week there before I moved back."

"But it's supposed to be Aang's house," Katara protested.

Aang chuckled. "I don't mind, but honestly, I don't think I need another house. I mean, we still have the one in the Upper Ring of Ba Sing Se and with no airbenders left, I could just live in one of the Air Temples."

"You could," Hakoda conceded. "But when you're here, wouldn't you like a place all to yourself?"

"It wouldn't be all to himself if Sokka were to have a room in it," Katara laughed.

Aang shrugged.

"It's bound to be better than staying with us old people, isn't it?" the chief joked.

"I don't mind," Aang replied honestly. "But if Sokka wants that room of his, I guess we'll have to build the house.

It should have taken a while to build that house, but with Sokka, Katara, Hakoda and even Pakku helping, it was finished in no time along with a shelter for Appa. Sokka was completely satisfied with the house, but Aang couldn't help but think he'd be lonely and bored in such a big place all by himself.

"So," Katara wondered, looking at the empty rooms and smiling. "When do Sokka and I move in?"

"You want to move in?" Aang asked.

"Katara, if he doesn't want you to move in to our house, then I don't think you should," Sokka said matter-of-factly.

"It's _Aang's _house," she corrected. "And if you get to move in, why can't I? I'm…"

"Not welcome." Sokka finished.

"I never said that," the airbender pointed out.

"Think of this as a bachelor pad," Sokka said. "A guys only zone."

"You're not a bachelor, Sokka. Besides, you live with Suki on Kyoshi."

"That's different," the nineteen year old said. "We're engaged."

"How is it different?" Katara cried, exasperated. "Aang and I are together."

"Yeah, but you're not engaged yet. There's a difference."

Katara groaned. "I'm so sick of you and you're double standards."

Sokka just grinned. He knew perfectly well that he couldn't stop Katara from being with Aang if he wanted to, but sometimes, he loved teasing her. He wasn't really surprised either when she did move in, though in all fairness he had practically packed Suki's things for her and ushered her into the newly built house, even though she was just supposed to be vacationing for a few weeks, so he couldn't force Katara not to move in.

"I'm really sorry we're invading your new house like this," Suki said to Aang once all the moving had been done.

"I don't mind," he replied, smiling. "Besides, what am I supposed to do in this place all by myself?"

"Relax?" The Kyoshi Warrior suggested. "Isn't that what homes are for?"

"Yeah, but a house with this many rooms is way too big for me," Aang admitted. "And I lived in a temple with lots of other people, so I'm used to it. Besides, the more the merrier."

She couldn't deny that it certainly was merry. It was certainly more fun than any of the work the awaited her on Kyoshi. They spent their time doing various things, from penguin sledding, which Suki had never tried to shopping. Katara even made her a traditional Water Tribe dress and another outfit for Aang. Sokka thought it was ridiculous, but Suki thought the gesture was nice, that is until she saw the airbender in a parka.

"You look ridiculous in that," Sokka mentioned, munching on a piece of seal jerky.

"It was your sister's idea," Aang replied. "Ugh, how do you guys wear this? It's so itchy."

"You get used to it after a while. But Sokka's right" Katara said, giggling. "You do look somewhat ridiculous."

"It was your idea," Aang repeated, before taking it off.

"I know," she replied, smiling. "I just thought you might find it useful since you're here."

"Thanks but no thanks," he laughed.

"I could get used to a life like this," Katara said that night as she and Aang sat in the common room talking. Sokka had already gone to bed and Suki had retired to her room to write a quick letter to the other Kyoshi Warriors before following Sokka's example and going to bed.

"So could I." Aang said. "But I think after a little while, I'd get tired of the cold."

"We can always go somewhere else then," she suggested, laughing. "Maybe to one of the Air Temples or Ba Sing Se. You don't have to stay here because of me."

"I don't mind." As long as Katara was with him, Aang honestly didn't mind where they stayed.

The following morning passed in much the same manner as any other day, but by evening, Katara was surprised to find her father on the doorstep asking if he could have a word with Aang.

"Are you nervous?" she asked, when she told him her father wanted to see him.

"No," he said. "Should I be?"

"No," She replied, smiling. "Have fun, though."

Hakoda was watching a few waterbenders play in the snow, but quickly turned around when Aang appeared.

"Go easy on him, Dad," Katara teased. "He might decide not to come back after you're done with him."

"I'll try," he promised.

"Is something wrong?" the airbender wondered, once they started walking to some unknown destination.

"Yes and no," the Chief admitted, pulling a small bundle of papers from his pocket and handing it to Aang. "I just thought you should know."

Aang read through them, not at all surprised that the letters were all asking Hakoda's permission to ask for Katara's hand in marriage.

Hakoda knew it probably wouldn't mean much to either his daughter or the Avatar, but he supposed it wouldn't hurt to let Aang know that he had competition, though he wasn't even sure if other young men vying for his daughter's attention would be considered much completion to the airbender. And even if they were, he knew Katara would easily turn them down. After all, the last time he had spoken to her about her relationship with Aang, she had openly admitted her feelings to him and said something along the lines of: _I don't think I can be without him_. And judging from what he had seen, it seemed safe to say the airbender felt the same about his daughter.

"I don't think they're any cause to worry," Hakoda admitted, motioning to the letters Aang held.

"No," Aang agreed. "They're probably not."

"But you are planning to ask Katara, right?" He inquired. Though he didn't actually say marriage, Aang understood what he meant.

"Eventually," He admitted.

"Well, if you're waiting for my permission, you had it when you brought Katara home from the war in one piece," he chuckled.

Aang smiled. "Thank you."

Hakoda suddenly grinned. "You'll probably have a much easier time with Katara than I did with Kya."

"Really?"

"For a while, Kya always played hard to get," Hakoda replied, smiling at the memory. "But I guess all my nagging did the trick."

Aang couldn't imagine a younger Hakoda constantly pleading with Kya, but he smiled at the thought.

"In all honesty, I think approaching Kya was the hardest part," the chief admitted. "I think, like most other young men in the tribe, I was a little nervous to ask Kya."

Aang didn't think he'd have to worry about that because he'd been waiting to ask.

"Was it hard to ask her?" Aang wondered, more out of curiosity than to seek the older man's advice.

"Not for me," Hakoda admitted. "Kya had already turned down ever man who proposed, so when I did, I honestly didn't think she'd say yes. It's the wrong attitude, I know, but I was only eighteen at the time. For me, asking her was the easy part. It was just approaching her to ask, that presented a problem. Her parents were usually with her and, like most, I was a little terrified of them. They were some of the nicest people I've met, but when you're a boy asking a girl to marry you, her parents are the next scariest things after your worst nightmare." He laughed when he realized what he had just said. "I hope that didn't deter you."

"Not at all," Aang replied, grinning.

"I keep forgetting you defeated Ozai," Hakoda said. "I'm sure asking Katara will seem like a walk in the park compared to that."

Aang merely shrugged. He didn't think he it'd be too hard, but he couldn't say for sure. He just hoped everything went well.

He and Hakoda spent some time just talking after that. They talked about everything from engagement necklaces to waterbending and Aang was surprised to find that, in many ways, Hakoda reminded him of Gyatso. Perhaps it was because Gyatso had been like a father to him; he really couldn't say. All he knew was that by the time they returned home for dinner, he was suddenly very thankful that Hakoda approved of him and that he was rather pleased with Aang and the engagement necklace he had made.

That night, as he and Katara sat by the hearth talking, he decided that maybe now was a good a time as any.

"Hey, Katara, can I ask you something?" he wondered, smiling.

She nodded, but the gleam in her eyes and the kiss she gave him when she noticed the necklace spoke for her.

* * *

_Thank you to everyone who read and reviewed my stories. :)_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	52. Midnight Queries

_I finally managed to post this before Hurricane Irene did some damage and cut the power lines in my town. I can't take credit for this one; all credit goes to Love Struck Teenagers. Enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything. All credit goes to Mike and Bryan :)_

* * *

**LII. Midnight Queries**

_We make beautiful madness._

~ Delta Goodrem, Beautiful Madness

A rather late summer day was coming to an end when Katara and Aang left the theater on Ember Island and began walking home. After witnessing the Ember Island Players' inaccurate and awful production of _The Boy in the Iceberg_, Katara didn't think she'd ever return to see another play, but a world famous theater group had performed a well-known classic and since Suki and Mai recommended it her, she decided to go see it, especially since a sudden rainstorm had forced her to cut short her waterbending practice and seek shelter inside the house with nothing to do. Though neither she nor Aang had ever read or seen the play before, they weren't hesitant to admit that it was much better than the anything the Ember Island Players could have come up with, though, as Sokka had said on numerous occasions, anyone could come up with something better than the Ember Island Players.

"It was an excellent play," Katara said, as they walked along the beach towards Zuko's summer house where everyone was staying. "But I didn't like the ending. Too cliché."

"I wonder if the original version was like that," Aang mused.

The waterbender shrugged. "I don't know, but you have to admit, the ending was totally predictable. Everyone knew that the hero was going to get the girl after he killed the evil suitor."

"You didn't want him too?"

"No, I think he deserved to get the girl. She just didn't deserve him yet. She should have suffered a bit more before getting him."

Aang laughed in surprise. He shuddered to think of all the horrors Katara would have put the girl through if she had been the author.

"Something tells me that play would have been a lot more exciting if you were the director," he said, grinning at her.

"Honestly, I might have made it a tragedy instead of a comedy," Katara laughed. "But I'm glad you have faith in my directing abilities."

It was a short walk to the summer house but it seemed like it took them forever to reach. The play had ended later than expected and most of the people on Ember Island were asleep when Aang and Katara reached the house. Judging by the darkness that shrouded the house, it was safe to say that no one was up. Silently, Aang and Katara walked up the stairs to the front door, but when Aang tried the handle, he was surprised to find it locked.

"Do you happen to have a key?" he asked Katara. She shook her head and tried the door herself, but it was clear that it was locked.

"Maybe I can get in through my window," he said, thoughtfully. He often left it open for fresh air, but it was clear from where they were standing that most of the windows had been shut during the rainstorm earlier that evening.

"I could still try getting in," Aang said, trying the back door.

"Maybe you shouldn't," Katara said, nervously gazing at the house next door. It wasn't all that close to the Firelord's summer house, but it would be easy for someone to spot them from one of the upper levels of the building. The last thing Katara wanted was for the people next door to call authorities when they saw the two benders trying to break into the house. She couldn't imagine the authorities would be too pleased.

"So what are we supposed to do now?" Aang wondered.

Katara shrugged. "I guess we're locked out, so we might as well as make the most of it, right?"

"I guess so," Aang replied, smiling. "And since we're locked out we might as well as go somewhere where's there's a nice view instead of just looking at trees and rocks."

So they climbed over the hedge that ran around the property and made their way to the secluded beach that was all part of Zuko's property. Near the ocean, the cool breeze was a reprieve from the heat and humidity that had earlier left many people wishing it was winter instead of summer. The stars overhead were twinkling with an intensity Katara had never seen and suddenly she felt glad that she and Aang were locked out.

"It's a beautiful night out," Katara said as they walked along the water's edge, gazing up at the crescent moon suspended in the star studded sky. "I wish we could have done this more often."

"You actually want to get locked out of the house more often?" Aang teased.

"If it was on nights like this, I wouldn't mind," Katara admitted. She sighed. "I'm really going to miss the beach when we go back to the South Pole."

"Then you'd better make the most of this," the airbender said, bending a thin stream of water over her.

"Are trying to pick a fight with a waterbending master?" she asked, trying to sound as severe as she could.

"Not at all," he replied, giving her an innocent look. "Just making sure you have fun."

"By drenching me in water?" she sounded skeptical, but she was laughing.

"Of course, Sifu Katara. How else are we supposed to have fun?" he demanded, splashing her again. She shrieked in laughter and dodged the thin tendrils of water, trying her best to get back at him. After five minutes of their mock battle, which resulted in Katara trying to run away from him, they fell back on the sand laughing.

"You know it's pointless to run from airbenders, right?" Aang joked.

Katara grinned. "Of course. That's why I never bothered to before."

The two fell silent after that, simply watching the waves advance and retreat. There was something soothing about the crashing of the ocean waves, the whispering of the wind, and the chirping of the crickets around them. Aang thought he might even fall asleep on the beach, but after a few minutes, Katara was suddenly on her feet, directing his attention to the sky.

"It's a shooting star," she exclaimed, following its path with her gaze. "Did you make a wish?"

"No," he replied, coming to stand beside her. "I didn't."

"Why not?"

"I have the one thing I wish for."

Katara just gave him a quizzical look before turning her gaze back to the sky. "It's strange, but I've watched the stars almost my entire life but I never get tired of them."

"I was the opposite," Aang admitted. "Sometimes, I'd get tired of watching the stars because it made me feel lonely."

"You don't look like you don't enjoy stargazing now," Katara said, starting to wander aimlessly along the beach.

"I know, but that's because good company makes it so much better."

The waterbender smiled. "Didn't Monk Gyatso ever watch the stars with you?"

"Sometimes. I used to sneak up to the roof of the tower and watch from there, but Gyatso didn't come often. He was usually tired and I usually went when I couldn't sleep. But it was lots of fun when he did come. He always said that each person had their own star and we used to name them.."

"Which one was yours?" she asked.

"That one," he responded, stopping to point at a bright star above them. It twinkled as if acknowledging their presence.

"It almost looks like it's connected to that other star," she said, pointing to the twinkling object beside it.

Aang nodded. "Gyatso always used to say that it'd be for someone special."

"So, that's his star, then?"

"Actually, no. See that cluster way over there?" Katara nodded, following Aang's gaze. "Gyatso said there was one star for each of the elder monks there, including him."

"So who does that star belong to?" She wondered, returning her gaze to the star beside Aang's.

"If you draw a line from that star, straight down, there's another star directly below it."

"I see it," she said.

"Gyatso said if you draw two diagonal lines from the halfway point in between those stars, one going up and one going down, it passes through two sets of stars in a perfectly straight diagonal line."

"I see those too, but what do they have to do with your star?"

"They form a letter. Gyatso said that the name of the person that star belongs to starts with that letter."

Katara repeated his directions and retraced the paths. When she was done, she looked at him with an expression of surprise and shock.

"It's a K," she said, her cerulean eyes wide with wonder.

He smiled. "It's your star, Katara."

"But it can't be," she protested. "I…I probably wasn't even born when Gyatso told you that; my parents probably weren't even born. How can it be me?"

Aang shrugged. "Maybe it's a coincidence or maybe not. But the monks always used to say our destinies were written in the stars, so maybe it wasn't a coincidence."

"But how did Gyatso know?" she demanded.

"Does it matter?"

She shook her head. "No, I guess it doesn't, but I just find it a little strange. What if it's not meant for me after all? What if it's meant for someone else? "

"I don't know anyone else whose name starts with a K. It has to be you."

"Did you ever believe in Gyatso's theory?"

"About who the star belonged to?"

Katara nodded.

"Yeah, I believed him. It's hard not to with you here."

Katara gave him a somewhat sad smile. "If you'd met another girl whose name started with a K, you'd have said the same thing."

"Well, you're not some other girl," he pointed out.

"I know," she consented. "And I'm glad."

They spent the rest of the night on the beach, just walking and talking. Katara wanted to keep track of their stars so, just as Gyatso had done with Aang, the young Avatar showed her the path the stars took as the seasons changed. Katara never told him outright, but she was fiercely glad that no matter the season, the two stars never separated. And that night, as the two fell asleep on the beach, Katara thought that the star was by far the best present Aang had given her.

The following morning, when the two returned to the house, they were greeted by surprised looks from nearly everyone but Toph.

"Where've you two been?" Mai demanded.

"Someone tried breaking into the house," Sokka said. "Those weird people next door told us. It would have been nice if Mr. Avatar had sensed them coming." He shot a playful glare at Aang.

"That would have been us," Katara admitted.

"Yeah. We got locked out after we came back from the play," Aang explained. "And we didn't want to break any doors or anything."

"So you spent the entire night on the beach?" Zuko asked.

Aang nodded.

Suki just grinned. "Must have been one night."

Katara laughed. "Well, considering I got my own star, I guess it was."

The others looked at her in confusion, but Katara just smiled. She'd save that story for another day.

* * *

_Thanks for all the reviews and suggestions so far ^^_

_~ Cassie_


	53. Mischief

_I know this is long overdue, but better late than never, right? All credit for this one goes to Sylvanna (thanks for the idea^^). This particular oneshot is set in between ATLA and TLOK and so, there are probably some (if not lots) of discrepancies. And since there's not much info on Katara and Aang's older two children, I purposely left their descriptions vague. Still, I hope it doesn't detract from the story. Enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything._

* * *

**LIII. Mischief**

_"What is a home without children?_

_Quiet."_

~ Henry Youngman

Katara's headache was just beginning to alleviate when the sound of shrieks and cries picked up in the courtyard just below her window. She didn't have to look outside to know what was going on. The noise itself was an indication that children were hard at work, inventing imaginary evils to fight and nonexistent people to save. Ever since she and Aang had cleared the courtyard and fixed the broken fountain, their children had spent most of their time playing there. Katara loved her children, but that didn't mean they didn't drive her up the wall sometimes. And as much as she her headache was bothering her, Katara found she didn't have the heart to tell her children to stop playing when they were having so much fun.

"Hey Kya," she heard Tenzin ask after their mock battle had ceased. "How come I'm always the bad guy?"

"Because you're good at it," was the little waterbender's reply. "And besides, you're better at being the bad guy than I am at being the good guy."

"But how come Gyatso never has to be the bad guy?" Tenzin demanded. "Why can't I ever be the good guy?"

"I'm older," Gyatso said proudly. "So I don't have to be the bad guy if I don't want to."

"No fair," Tenzin grumbled. "I want to be a good guy!"

"Well, you can be the good guy when we play pirates," Kya promised.

"But he always messes up," Gyatso protested. "And I never have the awesome swordfight with him. The evil pirate always has the swordfight with the good guy before he loses."

"It's okay," Kya said. "It's just a game."

"But he always does things wrong," Gyatso huffed. "He's not supposed to use his airbending to fight the evil pirate."

"But I'm the littlest," Tenzin protested. "How else am I supposed to fight?"

"Without your bending, airhead." Gyatso replied.

"I'm not an airhead!"

"Gyatso!" Kya cried, suddenly sounding very much like her mother. "Don't call him that."

"Well Mama called Dad an airhead once. And Tenzin's just like him. So he's an airhead too." Gyatso laughed.

"Am not."

"Are too. You always mess things up when we play pirates."

"He doesn't mean that, Tenzin," Kya said, glaring at her younger brother.

But the little airbender didn't look too convinced. "Fine, then have fun playing pirates without me," Tenzin cried, storming off.

Kya watched him go before turning on Gyatso. "You happy now? How are we supposed to play pirates now?"

"He'll come back soon."

"Yeah, but still. You shouldn't have said that."

"How come you're always on his side?" Gyatso demanded.

"Because you keep picking on him," Kya retorted.

"Do not."

"Do too."

"Do not."

"Do too."

"He keeps messing up."

"It's a game," Kya cried. "For spirit's sake, only an imaginary game. He can't mess up."

Gyatso groaned. "Alright, I get it. Let's just find him before he tells Mama so I can apologize. Mama might send me to bed without dinner."

Kya just rolled her eyes. "Mama would never do that."

"She sent herself to bed without dinner once," the little waterbender mentioned, following his sister in search of their missing brother.

"I think she wasn't hungry, genius," Kya chuckled. "You don't punish yourself for being bad. Besides, Mama and Dad never get in trouble."

Gyatso just shrugged and continued looking for Tenzin. In the Southern Air Temple, it was like looking for a needle in a haystack. There were thousands of places he could hide and it was well past dinner time when the two siblings reported their missing brother to their parents.

"Mama, we can't find Tenzin," Kya said, sliding into her seat at the dinner table.

Katara gazed out the window and bit her lip. The light was slowly receding from the mountains and once it was dark, finding the little airbender would be next to impossible. She had half a mind to ask Aang, who had just entered the room, to go look for him but at that moment, the front door was thrown open and Tenzin walked in holding a squirming object in a tight grip while smiling hugely at his parents.

"Look what I found," he exclaimed, releasing his grip on the object. At first, it looked like a shapeless bundle of fur, but it was evident it was a winged lemur. "I found a conoly of lemur monkeys."

"I think you mean colony," Aang laughed, handing his son his plate of food. "And they're winged lemurs, Tenzin, not lemur monkeys."

"But I still found it," he said, proudly. "So can we keep him?"

"I think it's a she," Katara chuckled, watching the way Momo acted around the newcomer. "Looks like he's trying to impress her."

"Can we keep her, Mama?" Tenzin pleaded. "Please?"

"But we already have Momo," Katara pointed out.

"But another one would be nice," Gyatso chimed in with Kya nodding vigorously in support.

Katara just looked at Aang and he shrugged.

"Please?" Kya begged. "I'll work extra hard at my waterbending."

"I'll do the dishes," Gyatso promised, forgetting that he wasn't tall enough to do that.

"I'll do the cleaning," Tenzin added.

"And I'll sew my own clothes," Kya promised. "And if you teach me, I'll do all the cooking."

Aang and Katara just exchanged glances.

"We should have gotten another lemur sooner," Aang said, smiling at Katara.

She nodded. "I can't believe we didn't think of that sooner."

"And we'll take care of it," all three chorused. "So can we keep it?"

Katara just laughed. "You don't need to wash the dishes, cook, clean, or sew."

"So can we keep it?"

"We'll see."

"But I think we should," Kya said, rolling a sea prune around on her plate.

"Kya, don't play with your food."

"But I don't like stewed sea prunes," she said, causing her mother to shoot a sideways glare at her father.

"You and your stupid genes," she whispered to Aang. "Does anyone in this family like stewed sea prunes?"

"I do," Gyatso offered as Tenzin just made a face.

Aang grinned. "I might not like it, but I still eat it."

"Why? No one's forcing you," Katara said.

"I know, but somehow, your sea prunes are tastier than the ones I had before."

"I'm sure they are." Katara laughed, noticing Kya hand hers off to the lemur. Momo looked a little disappointed until Tenzin so generously offered his up too.

Admittedly, having another lemur around probably wasn't such a bad idea, but Katara wasn't sure if they could handle two lemurs. Momo hadn't needed any training or anything when he had joined their group but this new lemur looked almost feral. And she certainly didn't want it biting any of her kids. Thankfully, it never did, but it made more mischief than all three of her kids combined. Within a few hours, the pantry, the fruit garden, and the vegetable patch they kept in one of the many courtyards had been raided and a rather bloated lemur was lounging lazily on the kitchen table. The following morning, a letter from Suki was found in shreds and one of Gyatso's books was found torn and tattered. The lemur also seemed to have a passion for apricots, because the old tree in the fruit garden was stripped of its fruit within two days. As the three children watched their newest member of the family gorge herself on the sweet fruits, they all agreed that Anzu would be a perfect name for her.

Perhaps having two winged lemurs wasn't the best idea as Anzu and Momo often fought, but even Katara couldn't bring herself to get rid of Anzu. True, Anzu had caused more trouble than her kids, but she was also fiercely protective of the young mother, even though Katara was usually the one who spent the least amount of time with her. At first, Aang hadn't even been able to have a normal conversation without Anzu chirping at him in a rather annoyed tone as she sat on Katara's shoulder, but gradually, she got used to everyone. At the end of the first week, it seemed hard to believe she hadn't always been with them because it felt like she had always been a part of their family.

Still, in spite of how much everyone liked her, Anzu had her faults. She was a playful, mischievous lemur who often took things to her secluded alcove when no one was looking. She never did much with anything she took, but Aang likened her to a miser the way she horded things. Anzu had all sorts of objects stowed away in that alcove, everything from thread to rocks. And she wouldn't let anyone come within five feet of the alcove, lest they take her things. For a while, no one seemed to mind, but when a letter to Aang from an important Fire Nation official and Gyatso and Kya's waterbending scroll were added to Anzu's collection, Katara started thinking that maybe the little lemur might be too much to handle. The two little waterbenders didn't really need the scroll to practice, but Aang did need the letter to write a reply back, but Anzu wouldn't let him have it. It was only through sheer luck that Momo managed to get it for Aang. And when Anzu took Katara's mother's necklace, the waterbender thought that was the final straw.

"That lemur needs to go," she muttered, eyeing Anzu warily.

"Good luck getting her to leave," Aang replied, hastily writing his reply to the Fire Nation official before Anzu could take that as well.

Anzu stretched lazily before coming to sit on Katara's shoulder. The waterbender literally had to pry her off, but not before Anzu managed to steal the engagement necklace Aang had made for her.

"Give it back," Katara demanded. Anzu just chirped happily before landing on a dresser. Katara tried to snatch the necklace back, but the little lemur was quicker. She was out the door before Katara could even blink. Suppressing the urge to scream, Katara darted after the winged creature.

Kya, Gyatso, and Tenzin all watched in surprise. There was something comical about their mother chasing the lemur about the house. The harder they laughed, the more excited Anzu got and pretty soon, she forgot all about that necklace. She was so focused on flying away from Katara that she hardly noticed when she dropped the necklace. Luckily, Tenzin managed to airbend it to himself just before it hit the ground and shattered into pieces.

"I saved it, Mama," he said, proudly handing the necklace back to Katara.

"Thanks, Tenzin. As for you," she said, turning to Anzu who flattened her ears and cowered down. "You're…" Anzu blinked sadly and Katara groaned, burying her face in her hands. "I give up." She really didn't have the heart to get rid of that lemur. And perhaps it was a good thing because after a few weeks, Anzu tired of her mischief and became just like Momo. She was calm, obedient, and helpful. She even returned everything she had taken, including Katara's mother's necklace. And so, one late evening, just as the sun's rays were receding from the mountain, Tenzin led Gyatso and Kya to the hidden colony and showed them all the lemurs he had found.

"They're so cute," Kya squealed rushing to pick on up.

"You think they'll play with us?" Gyatso wondered.

"Only one way to find out," Tenzin replied. He made a move to go after one, but Gyatso stopped him.

"Hey, Tenzin, I'm sorry I called you an airhead the other day. I was being mean. Sorry."

"It's okay. That was a long time ago," the little airbender replied.

"Well better late than never," was Gyatso's response.

Now let's go play with some lemurs," Tenzin cried, using his airbending to chase a particularly fat one.

That evening, as that Avatar's three children trooped into the house, Katara noticed they were hiding something.

"What are you three hiding?" she demanded. Aang had a feeling he knew what was about to come.

Kya giggled and the three proudly presented their parents with three new winged lemurs.

As Aang and Katara exchanged glances and wondered what they were going to do, the three children used their sweetest voices and asked them one thing.

"Can we please keep them?"

* * *

_Thanks for all the reviews I've gotten so far. :)_

_~ Cassie_


	54. A Grandmother's Concern

_I've been a bad author. I know it's been almost two weeks since I last updated this, but I was really busy. But I finally managed to post this (better late than never, right?). The idea is PandaLily22's so all credit goes to her. Enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything._

* * *

**LIV. A Grandmother's Concern**

_"A grandmother is a little bit parent, a little bit teacher, and a little bit best friend."_

~ Unknown

In the darkness of the winter night that seemed to stretch over the South Pole like a blanket, three figures hastily trudged through the snowdrifts towards the ocean a few hundred yards away. Despite the chill, Sokka and Hakoda had gone out to go fishing. Trailing behind them, Aang looked out of place. He honestly didn't know why Sokka had dragged him along but the warrior had said he wouldn't like being in the house with just Kanna and Katara as they had a tendency to talk about subjects women generally discussed. Aang would have rather preferred being indoors than out in the cold, endless night that winter usually brought on to the South Pole, but it was too late to turn back now. Shoving his frozen hands into his pockets, he concentrated on using some firebending to keep them warm while trudging after the Chief of the Southern Water Tribe and his son.

* * *

"What I'd give to be a firebender," Kanna muttered, giving the hearth in the kitchen an ineffectual poke. "Why is it that these fires never seem to warm the house."

"It's warm enough," Katara admitted.

Kanna sighed. "Maybe I am just getting old."

Katara laughed. "If it makes a difference, Gran Gran, I bet you can singlehandedly take down Sokka with nothing but a wooden spoon."

"Of course. I'm a grandmother; what else are we for?" She chuckled. "Oh, it seems so strange to think that you two are so grown up and engaged. I must admit, I'm rather fond of that Kyoshi Warrior. I don't think I could have done half the things she's doing when I was her age. When is she coming back?"

"Day after tomorrow," Katara replied. "She said she has some last minute stuff to take care of before coming down here again."

"I hope you told her to dress warmly. It's frightfully cold down here."

Katara nodded. "I did. It seems so strange to think that Sokka's getting married in a few months."

"It is," her grandmother agreed, handing Katara some dough to knead. "And what about you?" she asked, eyeing the engagement necklace her granddaughter wore. "You don't think it's strange that you're engaged?"

The waterbender smiled. Frankly, Katara didn't find it strange. It felt…right, somehow. She couldn't explain it clearly in terms that would be coherent and make sense, but being engaged to Aang just felt…natural almost, like it was what was supposed to happen.

"Honestly, I'm a little shocked and excited," Katara admitted. "But I don't find it strange."

"I think it'd be a little hard not to be shocked and excited when you're engaged to the most powerful person in the world," Kanna said. "But Katara, have you thought about this seriously?"

"Thought about what?" Katara asked blankly.

"Your engagement."

"Of course I have, Gran Gran."

"And you still want to go through with it?"

"Of course I do. I… do you not approve, Gran?"

"What's there not to approve of, Katara? Aang's the Avatar and he loves you very much. You're a very lucky girl, Katara. But as fond as I am of Aang, you're my granddaughter and I want you to be happy."

"I will be," she replied, softly.

"Will you be? Marriage is a lifelong commitment, my dear. If you don't like it, there's not much anyone can do to help."

"I know and I understand that, but I still want to do this," Katara said.

Kanna returned, momentarily, to her cooking before turning back to face Katara. Her granddaughter had a quizzical expression on her face and her sapphire eyes seemed to regard her in a curious light.

"I'm not trying to deter you," Kanna explained. "I just want you to know what you're getting yourself into. You have a choice, Katara. Unlike the women before you and even some of the young women today, you can choose what you want to do."

"I know what I want to do."

"And you've considered this from all angles?"

"I…suppose so."

"You shouldn't gamble with your future. Supposing now might mean regretting it later."

"Well, I've thought about everything," Katara replied.

"You do realize you'll be on your own quite a lot, don't you?"

The waterbender nodded. She knew sharing Aang with the rest of the world was something she had to get used to, but from what she had learned, Roku and Ta Min never really had a problem with being away from each other in the past so she wasn't too worried about her future with Aang. At any rate, the airbender told her often enough that he didn't think he could stand too much time away from her before he went insane, so the thought had crossed her mind but she hadn't been too preoccupied about it.

"And I hope you realize you'll be busy yourself. It's only a matter of time before people come to you for help too."

"I know," Katara admitted. She wasn't too keen on the idea, but there wasn't much she could do about it.

"And you'll also be scrutinized. It won't be fun, but I'm sure you'll deal with it."

"What do you mean scrutinized?"

"What else? There will be all sorts of people watching you. Bitter people, men and women alike, just waiting for you to mess up so they can prove you don't belong with Aang. Strange people who will worship the ground you walk on, etc. Being the Avatar's wife isn't an easy job."

For a moment, Kanna thought she saw a flash of anger in Katara's eyes, but it was replaced by a different look, one Kanna could only describe as almost reproachful.

"Is that really what you think my future with Aang will be, Gran Gran? A job?"

"Katara, it won't be a walk in the park," she sighed. "You'll have responsibilities and expectations. It might not be what you imagined at all."

"It will be," she replied, resolutely. "Besides, Aang keeps telling me over and over again it shouldn't bother me because he'd never let his duties come between us and I believe him."

"He can make those promises, but he's still the Avatar. He can't run away from who he is."

Katara groaned in exasperation and her grandmother sighed.

"Katara, I'm not trying to pick a fight with you. Nor am I trying to discourage you from being with Aang. I just want to make sure you are fully aware of what you are doing. You can love someone and still hate being with them. I should know," Kanna said, eyes downcast.

"Then what should I do?" The waterbender demanded angrily. "Find a random stranger to fall in love with?"

At this, Kanna laughed. "You couldn't even if you tried, my little waterbender. Love works in ways we cannot understand. You'd be miserable if you tried and you know it."

"Then what do you want me to do, Gran Gran?" Katara sighed. "You keep saying you're not trying to discourage me, but then you come up with so many reasons why I should reconsider being with Aang."

"I just want to make sure you're aware of what your future holds. The road ahead will be fraught with challenges and at times it won't be easy, especially if you're not happy or if you can't trust the person you love."

"Well, I can. I trust Aang with my life."

"I know that. When I said 'you', I meant people in general."

The two fell silent after that. The only sound was that of Katara kneading the bread and Kanna stirred the stewed sea prunes.

Suddenly, Kanna burst out laughing. "You know, I sound exactly like my mother. Before I got married, she told me almost the exact same things. Of course, your grandfather wasn't the Avatar, but the lecture she gave me was generally along the same lines." She sighed, smiling a bit. "I think it's safe to say I won the prize for lousy grandmother of the year, right?"

Katara shook her head. "No. If anything, you deserve the prize for being the greatest. You're the best grandmother anyone could ask for, even if I was mad before. You were just concerned and I guess I wasn't really thinking about our engagement seriously."

"You're not going to back out, are you?" Kanna asked. "I can take waterbenders who chicken out down singlehandedly too and I might not even need a spoon."

Katara laughed at their joke. "I know. But I'm not backing out. I couldn't. I'm just thinking about it."

"Are you nervous?"

"Honestly, yes. I wasn't before, but now…"

"Yes?"

Katara sighed and stopped kneading the dough. She wiped her hands clean and turned to face her grandmother.

"I'm scared I'll let everyone down. What if I'm not good at being the Avatar's wife? What if Aang decides he doesn't want me anymore, or if he gets bored of me, or…"

"Katara, now you're being ridiculous. You'll be an excellent wife. It's in your genes; with a mother like yours, there is no way you can be a horrible wife. As for Aang deciding he doesn't want you, I think that is highly unlikely. He is the type of person who would put you and your needs before his and the world's. I wouldn't be surprised if, in a few years, government officials started complaining that the Avatar was too busy being with you than helping the world."

"But what if he gets tired of me?"

"He'll get tired of you when I grow wings and fly. You're worrying unnecessarily now."

"I can't help it," Katara replied, biting her lip. For some reason, the truth came at her as if it was hitting her for the first time. She was engaged to the Avatar. The most powerful person on the planet, the bridge between worlds. Now, it seemed so surreal.

"What if Aang abandons me for some other girl?"

"I will personally take care of him, Avatar or not," Kanna promised. "But you and I both know he would do that. He couldn't." She sighed. "Maybe I shouldn't have had this conversation with you. Now, you're just being unreasonable."

"I'm sorry," the waterbender apologized. "It's just that I never realized how much truth there was in what you said. Do you really think I can do this?"

"I said it would be hard, but you've helped save the world, my little waterbender. This should be a piece of cake compared to that."

"I hope it is," Katara said, smiling. "Aang seems to think it will be."

Kanna chuckled. "I wonder where those three are anyway," she murmured referring to Sokka, Hakoda, and Aang. "Why they go out in such cold weather or why they dragged Aang along is beyond me. I bet they're probably still fishing."

Kanna's guess was somewhat accurate. Sokka was trying his luck at catching a couple more fish before they called it a day, but Hakoda had seemed to think they had plenty. So while Sokka fished patiently, the airbender and the chief waited. At last, Sokka gave up and the three began the trek home.

"We've been gone for a long time," Hakoda noted, glancing at the sky. "What do you think your grandmother and sister have been up to?"

Sokka grinned. "Girl talk, what else? Gran was probably talking to Katara about her engagement and stuff. You don't have to be worried," the warrior said to the airbender. "Gran gave me the same talk. She likes you. She's just concerned. She wants to make sure Katara knows what she's doing."

Aang nodded. Honestly, he was more concentrated on trying not to sneeze at the moment than worrying about what Kanna was telling Katara.

"I think she is," Hakoda said. "Some of the young men here are complete idiots, if you ask me. There are some nice ones, but I don't think they'd make her very happy."

Aang managed a small grin before sneezing anyway. Luckily, the fish didn't go flying as Sokka predicted they would.

They reached the house just as Kanna was leaving to get more firewood. Sokka took the fish in while Aang offered to help Kanna since he hadn't done much on the fishing trip.

"Just let an old woman do what she can while she can," she said, smiling good-naturedly.

"Perhaps you'd better go with her then," Hakoda teased. "My mother might decide she can waterbend and hurt herself."

They burst out laughing.

"I hope you haven't been slandering the poor boy's reputation," Hakoda continued, grinning at his mother.

Kanna shook her head. "Not at all, though I may have made Katara a nervous wreck. She's convinced Aang will get bored of her."

"I couldn't," Aang replied, grinning. "I'd get bored of being the Avatar, but not of being with Katara."

"Exactly what I told her, but my granddaughter won't listen. She's concerned that you might abandon her for someone else."

"I don't think I could or I'd want to. Sokka already threatened to feed me to the Unagi with Suki's help, if I ever did and I'd rather not get eaten by a giant sea creature."

Kanna laughed. "I don't think you will."

"Speaking of concerns," Hakoda said. "I've got one."

Aang nodded. "I'd imagine you'd have a lot."

"No," the chief admitted. "I'm not too worried because I've seen you and Katara together before and I know you'll take care of her whether she needs you to or not. But this concern is slightly different. It's about bringing back the airbenders."

"Oh," Aang replied.

"In the future, I don't want it to…"

"It's not Katara's responsibility to bring them back," Aang interrupted. "I know there are a lot of people who think it is, but, like I told her, it doesn't matter to me."

Kanna looked puzzled. "You don't mind being the last of your kind?"

Aang shrugged. "I'm not happy about it, but it's not fair to ask any one person to try and bring back an entire nation. And I wouldn't ask her to do something I couldn't do myself."

"So, in the future, you wouldn't mind if your children weren't airbenders?" Kanna clarified.

Aang nodded. "No. As long as Katara is happy and they are happy, I wouldn't."

Much to Aang's surprise, Hakoda chuckled instead of following up with a serious comment. "It's a good thing you weren't around when I was a boy," he stated. "Competition would have been fierce."

"I doubt it," Aang said, modestly.

"You'd have gotten all the girls," Kanna joked. "And my son and the other men would have all been bachelors."

Later that night, after their dinner had been finished, Aang joined Katara out on the frozen shores of the South Pole. An icy breeze was blowing and the ocean waves were lapping gently against the frozen shores as the two stood side by side watching the waves.

"Are you nervous?" Aang asked, glancing at the waterbender.

"A little," she admitted. "But it's wearing off. Gran Gran was talking to me and at first I just kept brushing things aside, but now I can't help but wonder if she's right. What if our future is not what I imagined it to be?"

Aang shrugged. "I don't know," he admitted. "I guess…"

"But there's another problem too," Katara continued. "What if it's better than what I imagined?"

"That's not a problem then, is it?" Aang wondered.

"It is, actually," Katara replied, grinning. "Because I may never want to leave you or let you go."

"Somehow, I don't think that'd be much of a problem for me."

Katara laughed. "We'll see. After all, we've got the rest of our lives to spend together, right?"

Aang nodded. "Yeah, we do, though I still think it's not long enough."

"How much longer could you possibly want?"

"Oh, I don't know," he replied, nonchalantly. "Forever sounds nice, don't you think?"

She smiled. "Forever sounds perfect."

* * *

_See that button on the bottom, the one that says review? A whole bunch of people have pressed it and I'm running out of ways to thank them (actually, I ran out 52 chapters ago :D). So, I guess I'll say what I always say. Thank you all so much for all the reviews I've gotten so far. Readers and reviewers are a writer's best friend and motivation. And thanks for all the ideas various people have given me. Honestly, if it wasn't for them, I probably wouldn't have updated as often as I have. Thank you all so much! ^-^_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	55. Anything For You

_I think this idea has been done numerous times by other authors before, but I still couldn't resist using it. I hope it's alright. Happy readings!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar._

* * *

**LV. Anything For You**

_"The hair is the richest ornament of a woman."_

~Martin Luther

Katara stood in front of the mirror and ran the brush through her long, brown hair. A warm, golden light was pouring in through the open window and seemed to make everything it touched, glow. Even her hair looked glossier than ever, though she was sure it was just the sunlight playing on it that made it seem that way. From the mirror, she noticed Aang peeking over his book and watching her. She found it slightly amusing that the airbender was so fascinated by something so simple, but she made no move to tell him that. It wasn't as if brushing her hair was something interesting; she had done it every day for as long as she could remember and Aang had never bothered to watch her before, had he?

The thought made Katara wonder. She'd never really noticed him watching her before. She'd always thought he'd been doing something else. But lately, she realized, she'd been paying more attention to how she did her hair. She always debated whether to leave it loose or braid it and often times, she found herself wondering which style Aang liked better. The realization made her blush. Since when had his opinion on her hair really mattered, anyway?

The brush suddenly hit a knot in her hair and Katara worked furiously at it, noticing from the corner of her eyes that Aang was watching her again. It gave her a queer sort of feeling, the type of feeling that left her fidgeting awkwardly, while a part of her wished that he's stop staring and another part wished he wouldn't. But at last the knot became untangled and the waterbender noticed that, reluctantly, the young Avatar had gone back to reading his book.

Katara sighed and gazed into the mirror as she pleated her hair. It had grown a little longer than she had thought it would.

"I should really cut my hair," she said, more to herself than to Aang.

The book Aang was reading closed shut and he looked at her incredulously. "You want to cut your hair?"

She shrugged. "Possibly."

"But why?"

"It's so long and heavy," she replied, finishing her braid and tying it tightly. "And it takes forever to comb."

"It didn't before."

Katara flushed. So he _had_ been watching her brush her hair all those times.

"But it's so long and frizzy," she said, realizing her hair hadn't been plaited properly. She undid it and began again. "And I have so much. It takes me a half hour just to brush it and plait it."

"But it's so pretty. Why would you want to cut it?"

"It' just so hard to manage," she replied, running the bush through her hair. "And it'll be so much easier to work with if I cut it short. My hair is so unmanageable right now."

He thought of Meng, then. She'd always complained about how unruly her hair was. But Katara's hair wasn't like hers. He's always thought it was pretty, even though he'd heard her remark once that she wished her hair was black instead of mud brown. Aang didn't think it was and he was glad her hair was brown, but he didn't tell her that.

A frustrated sigh broke him from his train of thoughts and he turned to look at Katara. Her braid was lopsided again and she was undoing the pleats rapidly. He thought about offering to help her, but he wasn't sure if she'd let him. But if she was going to cut it, there probably wouldn't be another opportunity for him to do so.

"Katara, if you're going to cut your hair, can I…?"

Her questioning look made him stop midsentence. "What?" she wondered, continuing to run the brush through her now knotted hair.

"Let me help you."

Before Katara could respond, Aang had taken the comb from her and gently began working at the knots. Katara was suddenly nervous, though she had no idea why. It was only Aang, after all.

They didn't speak much while Aang was brushing her hair. At some point, Katara had just closed her eyes and basked in the delightful feeling of Aang's hands gently running through her hair but then she remembered that she was standing in front of a mirror and that he could probably see the smile slowly creeping onto her face and she blushed. She hoped he didn't notice. If he did, his expressions didn't betray it.

Surprisingly, Aang looked like he was enjoying himself though Katara had no idea why. She wondered what pleasure he could possibly derive from brushing her hair. But the airbender had been itching to brush her hair just once, just so he could know what it felt like. It always looked so silky, so glossy that Aang often admitted to himself that, if he hadn't know it was hair, he'd have thought it was silk. He told her as much.

"It feels like silk."

"What does?"

"Your hair."

"Oh. I…thank you."

Aang tied the end of the braid and grinning, handed the comb back to Katara. "All done."

"Thanks, Aang." She was surprised to note the disappointment in her voice. She'd really enjoyed having him brush her hair, even if she wouldn't admit it.

"It was nothing," he replied. "I'd do it again, but you said you'd cut your hair."

She nodded. "I think I'll have to. It's gotten really long."

He gave her a sad smile. "I know, but I wish you wouldn't."

Katara was surprised by the sad look on his face. What did her hair matter to him? Why was he so sad? It puzzled her and as she sat in her room later that evening, with the sudden rain pounding on her window, she wondered if cutting her hair was even worth it. She'd have preferred shorter hair, but then she remembered the sad look on Aang's face. He hadn't bothered to stop her, but he told her often enough that her hair was perfect the way it was.

"I'll cut it anyway," she said to herself, reaching for the scissors. "It'll grow back." But then she remembered the wonderful feeling of Aang's hands running through her hair. It reminded her of how her mother used to brush her hair when she had been young. When knotted, Katara's hair was tough to tackle, but Aang, like Kya, had been gentle and patient and the knots had come away in no time. Cutting her hair would be the easiest solution to make managing it easier, but then a thought occurred to her. With short, manageable hair, she had no excuse to have Aang help her. Depending on how she cut it, her hair might've even been too short to braid. She wasn't so sure she liked the idea of Aang not helping her. She closed her eyes and sighed. If she thought hard enough, she could still feel Aang's slender hands moving gently through her hair. It had felt so relaxing, she hadn't wanted it to end. She could have stayed forever like that, with Aang brushing her hair.

"Who am I kidding?" she murmured. "I can't cut my hair. I'd be an idiot if I did." And as quickly as they had come out, the scissors were put away.

Katara went to find Aang after that. He was still sitting in the same spot and looked to be reading the same book, only he wasn't really reading. He was waiting to see Katara's new hairstyle. The moment he spotted her, he got up and waited for her to reveal her short hair.

"It looks the same," he noted, before Katara spoke.

She smiled. "That's because I didn't cut it."

"But I thought you wanted to."

"I did," she admitted. "But when I mentioned it, you looked so sad that I couldn't bring myself to do it"

"Katara," he laughed. "You don't have to keep it just for me. It's your hair, so you do whatever you want with it. I'll learn to like it, no matter how it is."

"I think I'll keep it like this," she said slowly. "But only if you promise me something."

He raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"If I ever need help…would you…help me?"

"Of course I would. What kind of question is that? I'll help you with anything."

Katara smiled."I meant with my hair," she said, softly. "You'll have to brush it for me."

He nodded. "I don't mind."

That night, as Katara went to bed, she decided to leave her hair loose. With any luck, it'd be knotted in the morning and Aang would have to help her brush it. The following morning, she found it was. Grabbing her comb, she raced down the hallway to the kitchen where Aang was feeding a hungry looking Momo. He smiled when he saw her.

"You're up early," he noted.

She nodded. "I couldn't sleep with all this hair in my face. Are you willing to help?" She asked, smiling and holding out her brush for him.

Aang grinned and took it. "Gladly."

And as he set to work brushing her hair, Katara was fiercely glad she decided not to cut it after all.

* * *

_Thanks for all the wonderful reviews I've gotten so far. You're all amazing :)_

_~ Cassidy A._


	56. Slipped Away

_It's raining, hence why I decided to post this somewhat depressing chapter. I had this written a while ago and I wasn't going to post it, but since I haven't updated in a while, I figured I'd post it anyway. I'm still working on Sylvanna's and PandaLily22's requests, so hopefully I can have those up soon. Sorry for such long gaps between updates, but I've been swamped with work lately. I'll still try and update once a week though. Happy readings!_

_P.S. I borrowed the title from Avril Lavigne's song of the same name, so I can't take credit for it ^^_

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything_

* * *

**LVI. Slipped Away**

_I will stay forever here with you, my love._

_The softly spoken words you gave me_

_Even in death our love goes on._

~ Evanescence, Even in Death

"Mother, please try to stay awake."

Katara opened her eyes and blinked in the sunlight filtering in through the window to find Tenzin watching her worriedly. Despite having slept a good sleep last night, she had fallen asleep again. She sighed. She was doing that more often lately, but she couldn't help it. There wasn't much she could do at this age.

"I'm awake," she grumbled, noticing how several people were watching her with worried expressions. She hated when they did that. "Don't gawk at me," she said gently, waving away all the concerned glances. "It isn't as if I'm going to die." The instant the words were out she regretted them. It started a whole another round of fussing and it was more than she could take.

"Maybe you should get some fresh air," Gyatso suggested. Sighing, Katara gently lifted herself from her chair and made her way outside. She loved her family to pieces, but it didn't mean they weren't annoying at times, especially when they acted like she could die any minute. She knew she was old, but still, it was irritating to know that she couldn't do something on her own without someone, somewhere worrying about her.

The spring air outside was cool and although Katara had been instructed to wear her shawl, she cast it off once she was sure no one would see her and began walking. She chuckled to herself when she remembered how she used to disobey her grandmother by running off to play without her mittens or not wearing her hood when it was particularly cold. It was a little different in this case, as she was a grandmother now. She gazed up at the Southern Air Temple rising up behind her. Idly, she wondered if calling it a temple was accurate anymore. Since it had been restored, it had become their house and though she had entertained the idea of moving a few times long ago, she found she didn't have the heart to leave the place and all the wonderful memories attached to it.

Katara gazed at her reflection in the pond and suddenly felt ancient. So much had happened since the century war had ended; it seemed like another lifetime away, almost as if it hadn't happened. There were fewer and fewer people left who remembered anything about the war though Katara remembered most of it clearly.

"You never seem to listen, do you?" She suddenly heard someone chuckle. She smiled when she saw Kya walking towards her with the shawl in her arms. "You're like a little child sometimes, Mother."

"Maybe you're right," Katara replied, shrugging and taking the shawl before Kya could help her put it back on. "But it's your father's fault if I'm that way. He always was a kid at heart."

Kya nodded and cast a sidelong glance at her mother. If Katara felt sad, she was an expert at concealing her emotions because Kya couldn't see anything written on her mother's face.

"You really should wear your shawl," Kya tried again. "You might catch a cold."

"I'll be fine," Katara said, smiling at her daughter. "Honestly, you shouldn't worry so much."

"I'd be lying if I said I would try not to." She admitted. Ever since she had lost her father, she had been diligent in watching her mother, not that Katara needed watching. But, like any daughter, she was scared her mother might get sick or hurt or worse yet, die, and after losing so many people, Kya wasn't sure she could take it if she lost her mother. Perhaps it was why after she, Tenzin, and Gyatso had grown up they hadn't left the Southern Air Temple. Kya had never regretted her decision about not leaving and she was fairly certain her brothers didn't either. After all, they had spent many happy years together before tragedy struck.

"I still miss him," she said softly, stealing a glance at Katara. Katara just nodded. "Sometimes, I forget he's gone. It feels like he never left."

Katara gave a small smile. "The ones you love never truly leave."

Kya knew there was some truth in that. If she listened hard enough, she could still hear her father's laugh echoing within the temple. But it still wasn't the same as having him around. She missed being able to laugh and joke with him or the days they would spend together as a family where he didn't have to worry about his Avatar duties and she didn't have to worry about her waterbending training.

Kya sighed. All this reminiscing made her feel old. "I feel like a grandmother," she said.

Katara laughed and pointed out she would be, eventually, if her children had children. Kya made a face. As much as she loved her children, she didn't like thinking about being a grandmother. It made her feel so much older than she really was.

"You shouldn't complain so much," Katara said. "Look at me; I can't do half the things I used to. And I look more like an old woman than you ever will."

Kya rolled her blue eyes. Her mother had always been a beautiful and vibrant woman and she found that old age hadn't done much to change that. She still had a vivacious personality, a spring to her step, and unlike many women her age, her hair was still its original brown and didn't have much gray in it.

"I'd hardly say you're old, Mother. If people can live to be over a hundred, you're still considered young. And you don't look a day over fifty."

Katara laughed. "If you say so."

"Are you not happy?" Kya asked, softly.

"What?"

Kya sighed. "Ever since Dad passed away, you seem…oh, I don't know, different, somehow. Like you're not really you."

Katara sighed. "I am happy, I really am. But I'm just trying to reconcile myself with the truth that I can't have the best of both worlds. There's nothing more I'd love than to watch all my grandchildren grow up, Kya, but the same time, I want to see your father again. And my mother."

Kya nodded understandingly. The process of dying seemed to be some sort of limbo; it was bittersweet. The promise of being reunited with loved ones already gone seemed like a wonderful idea, but it did little to alleviate the pain of leaving other loved ones behind. She could imagine just how her mother felt.

The weeks passed slowly and though Katara was careful not to worry her family, they could tell she was getting weaker. She'd never admit it herself, but it was getting harder for her to do ordinary things. But the others were perceptive. Kya had discovered that her mother could barely stand five minutes outside in the pleasant spring air before feeling cold and complaining of a chill and Tenzin himself caught Katara bemoaning her lack of energy. One afternoon, Tenzin and Pema had been going over important matters when Jinora had walked in and told him that her grandmother had barely eaten her lunch and was constantly falling asleep. Tenzin had told her not to worry and that lots of elderly people were like that, but it just reinforced everyone's belief that, whether they liked it or not, Katara was slowly dying.

One rather bleak afternoon found the residents of the Southern Air Temple running around, like bees, rushing to and fro in search of something. Katara had suddenly disappeared and Kya and Tenzin had immediately started looking for her with Gyatso's and Kya's children and Jinora, Meelo, and Ikki, in tow. It was Kya, Gyatso and Tenzin who found her, however, sitting on the edge of the marble fountain in a secluded courtyard and looking rather despondent.

Her surprise was readily apparent when her children attacked her with hugs and gently scolded her for scaring the life out of them, but she merely chuckled and said they shouldn't be so melodramatic.

"What were you doing, anyway?" Tenzin demanded.

The smile suddenly vanished from Katara's face. "Waterbending," she said. "But I can't." She sighed. "I guess I really am old."

Kya didn't say anything, but merely fixed her gaze on her reflection in the fountain, trying her hardest not to cry. She'd barely gotten over her father's death and now it seemed like her mother was fading away too. It was more than she could take. Losing her father had been a terrible blow, but somehow she and her siblings had managed to get through the terrible ordeal simply because Katara had been there and they still had each other. If they lost Katara now, Kya didn't know what they would all do.

That night, as Katara went to bed, she decided that the following morning she'd try waterbending again. As she crawled into her bed and gazed over at the empty place beside her a strange sort of loneliness crept inside of her but it was quelled by the thought of spending the day with her family tomorrow. If she remembered corrected, Gyatso had promised his children and the whole family that he would take them on a picnic. As she slowly drifted to sleep, the waterbender vaguely wondered how her children and grandchildren would react if she snuck off again to attempt to waterbend. She never figured out because she never got the chance. When she awoke, she was no longer in the Southern Air Temple, but in a beautiful garden, surrounded by family and friends, from Toph to her mother, and the one person she'd waited patiently to be reunited with. Aang.

That night, when several little airbenders awoke to the sound of crying, they were surprised to discover their parents up, along with their aunt, uncle, and cousins. It was a late spring night and a full moon was shining like a diamond in the star studded sky and the three little airbenders couldn't figure out why everyone was so upset. While Pema slowly explained to her children what had happened overnight, their father and his siblings stood together, wiping the tears that trailed down their faces. After some time, Tenzin directed his children's' attention to the sky. Somewhere in the heavens, a new star had formed and it was glowing with such intensity that the residents of the Southern Air Temple knew that no matter what, Aang and Katara were always watching over them.

* * *

_If there was an award for being the most repetitive person on the planet, I'd probably win it since I can't seem to find enough ways to thank everyone who read and reviewed my stories. So I guess I'll say what i always say: Thank you all so much. You're all amazing :)_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	57. Date with Disaster

_I managed to post this earlier than I expected. All credit for this one goes to PandaLily22 (I hope I did it justice). Enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything._

* * *

**LVII. Date with Disaster**

_You've got a way with words  
You get me smiling even when it hurts  
There's no way to measure what your love is worth_

~ Shania Twain, You've Got A Way

"Have I ever mentioned how much I love the beach?" Katara asked, smiling at Aang and letting the waves wash over her bare feet.

"You might have mentioned it once or twice," he teased, laughing with her.

Katara just smiled. To say that she was excited seemed like an understatement. She had loved every day of their vacation to the isles between the Earth Kingdom and the Southern Water Tribe, but she had been waiting for this day all week. Since it was a day before Suki's birthday, Sokka had, as promised, taken her somewhere special to have a little celebration. Toph had decided to partake in yet another bending battle between the resident earthbenders and waterbenders, a battle that she was sure to win since her skills surpassed those of most of the local benders here. That left the house all to Aang and Katara but they had found the beautiful spring weather too inviting to stay indoors and had consequently wandered to the beach. They hadn't planned on doing much of anything, but since they hadn't been alone like this for some time, they'd agreed on spending the day together. Personally, Katara could have spent all day on the beach but by mid-afternoon, it usually became crowded and so Aang suggested leaving before noon to avoid all the people.

But for now, the beach was deserted save for the waterbending master and the young Avatar who were strolling along the windswept shores and talking. Even if they lived in the same house, it seemed like the two never had much time alone, so they were grateful for the relatively empty day that lay ahead of them.

"I wish we had beaches in the South Pole," Katara said, lifting the hem of her dress so it didn't get wet by the gentle waves that lapped at her feet. "And I wish we had nice weather so we could actually go to the beach."

Aang shrugged. "The novelty would wear off after a while. Some of the other airbenders and I asked Monk Gyatso to bring us to a beach when we were little. At first it was fun, but after a while, we got bored of it. I'll never understand how some people find it romantic."

"The beach itself isn't very romantic," Katara conceded. "But it's who you're with that makes all the difference. You're the only person that's ever brought me to the beach."

"Only because you love it so much," Aang laughed.

"Since the South Pole is so different, I guess I always will," Katara replied. "As long as you don't make any sand sculptures of me like Sokka did for Suki, there's no way I can hate it."

"My sandbending isn't nearly as good as Toph's," Aang pointed out. "And besides, why would I even bother making a sand sculpture when I have you? You're a lot better than any sand sculpture I can make."

Katara blushed and tucked a strand of her loose hair behind her ear. "Well, I'll have to be the judge of that. You'll have to make one someday."

"Someday," he promised. "But not today. There are more exciting things to do."

Katara grinned and just followed him along the shore. It really was a beautiful day. The sun was shining brightly overhead and a cool breeze was blowing, carrying a few petals on its wings. The air was heavy with the scent of blooming flowers and it wasn't long before the two found a grove and Katara had more flowers than she could possibly carry. They walked through the village, had lunch, and even practiced waterbending before Katara begged to go back to the beach in the evening. Aang wasn't too sure beg was the right word since she had practically dragged him to the beach but he had complied anyway since he didn't think there was any harm in going back there. But they had scarcely been on the beach five minutes when they were attacked.

Perhaps attacked wasn't the right word because it wasn't as if they were being threatened in any way (although Katara certainly thought she was) but there really wasn't any other way to explain how a group of girls taking a stroll on the beach had spotted the Avatar and rushed over, crowding around him and all talking at once so Katara couldn't get a word in edgewise. At first it had only been five or six girls, but as more girls passed and word spread that the all powerful (not to mention handsome) Avatar was there, the number of girls steadily increased until Katara could barely see or hear Aang. She thought that the girls would leave after some time but when it became apparent that they wouldn't, she stormed off, somewhat jealous and feeling rather depressed. So she wandered off on her own, just walking around the village until she found a quiet place to sit in a seaside garden and think. She was alone for a while until a young man approached her.

"You look really down," he said, smiling handsomely at her. Katara didn't say anything or even bother looking at him. "Mind if I keep you company?"

The waterbender shrugged and the young man took a seat beside her on the stone ledge. From where they were sitting, the sound of waves crashing against the shore was clearly audible and Katara could still see the beach. Aang and his horde of followers, however, were nowhere in sight.

"I'm Seiji, by the way," The young man said, introducing himself.

"Katara," she replied, listlessly. "Nice to meet you."

"You're a waterbender, aren't you?" Seiji asked, his green eyes sweeping in her appearance. She still didn't turn to face him, but she nodded. "Yeah, I've seen you around. I'm a waterbender too."

"That's nice," she murmured, not really caring. Her thoughts were more occupied by what a certain airbender was doing.

Seiji nodded. "Yeah. It's kind of funny, though, because my dad is from the Southern Water Tribe and my mom is from the Earth Kingdom. She's an earthbender and she always wanted me to be an earthbender, but I'm not. So, where are you from?"

"Southern Water Tribe," she answered.

Seiji smiled. "Technically I would have been too, but my dad moved to the Northern Water Tribe a few years after he was born and I was born there before moving here when I was three."

"That's nice," she said again.

Seiji just blinked at her. "So," he ventured to ask, leaning back. "Did the Avatar leave you again for those other girls?"

"He didn't leave me," she shot back, indignantly.

"Of course he didn't," Seiji said. Katara turned to glare at him and Seiji grinned.

"What?" she demanded when his laughing didn't subside after half a minute.

"You're eyes," he said, smiling softly at her. "They're so blue, like water."

Katara made a face. If he was trying to sweet talk her, he wasn't doing a very good job, she thought, because that wasn't a very romantic thing to say.

"Aang always compared them to sapphires," she muttered.

Seiji just ignored her comment and ran a hand through his short, black hair. "Are you hungry?" He asked. "I know this great place where we can get some food." Before Katara could decline, his took her hand and led her through the village before arriving at a small restaurant. It was nearly full and Katara wished Seiji would let go of her, but he led her to a table and handed her a menu. Ignoring the strange and slightly creepy decorations, Katara reluctantly looked at the menu. She figured she might as well get something to eat since it didn't look like Aang would come and find her. But much to her disappointment, everything on the menu seemed to be made with papayas.

"What'll you have?" Seiji asked, smiling at her.

She shrugged. "I don't like papayas."

"What?" He cried. "That's crazy. Just try something."

"I'd rather not."

But when the waiter came, Seiji ordered something for her.

"Aang wouldn't have brought me to some restaurant I didn't like," she muttered, unaware that the other waterbender had heard her. "And he wouldn't have forced me to get anything either." Again, Seiji ignored her comments and they made small talk while they waited for their food. When it came, Seiji started eating right away, but Katara didn't eat a thing.

"So," he said, popping a piece of food in his mouth and chewing it slowly. "We should waterbend together sometime."

It didn't sound too appealing to Katara and she politely declined.

"Are you training to become a master?" he continued, paying no attention to her attempt to decline.

"I am a master waterbender," she said.

Seiji gave a low whistle and scooted closer to her. "Any chance you can teach me?"

"No." she said, somewhat disgusted.

Seiji finished his meal and looked at Katara's plate. "Are you going to eat that?"

Wordlessly, she shoved her plate in his direction and watched him gorge himself on even more food. She hadn't admitted it, but she actually was a little hungry, but she didn't want Seiji buying her anything. She sighed, wishing Aang were with her. He'd have definitely found a nicer place to eat, a place where she could eat as well.

"Katara," Seiji said, bringing her attention back. "You have got to try this. It's delicious."

"I already told you I don't like papayas," she said, somewhat irritated.

"Please?" He begged. "You'll love it."

"No."

"Why not?"

Katara just glared at him and he shrugged, finishing the rest of the dinner himself.

"Aang wouldn't have forced me to eat something I didn't like," she grumbled under her breath. Seiji just paid for their dinner and taking Katara's hand led her out.

"Nice night, isn't it?"

"No," she said, wriggling out of his grip. "I'm going back home."

"Oh, come on," he laughed, grabbing her before she could walk far. "The night is still young; there's so much we can do."

"I'm going home," she repeated, but Seiji just took her hand and began walking.

"There's a nice place I know of, where we can watch the stars," he said.

"I said I'm going home," she repeated for the third time. "Let go of me."

Seiji just smiled his handsome smile and Katara rolled her eyes. He probably got his way with that smile because it was the type most other girls would seem to fall for, but she wasn't like most other girls.

"Let's watch the stars for a while," he suggested, motioning to the brilliant night sky above them.

"Aang never forced me to do something I didn't want to."

"I'll walk you back home later, alright?" he said, disregarding her previous statement.

Katara's heart nearly missed a beat. She didn't want Seiji walking her back to the house and she certainly didn't want him knowing where she was staying while they were on vacation.

"I'd rather just go back," she said, annoyed.

Seiji just let go of her hand, sat down and chuckled. "Watch the stars with me, Katara. They're beautiful."

"I'd rather watch with them Aang," she mumbled, refusing to sit. Aang had brought her to the same spot the other night to watch the stars, but didn't feel right watching them without him. Seiji sighed, and leaned back against the stone outcropping.

"They're really pretty, but they don't hold a candle to you," he said referring to the stars and smiling at Katara.

"How many times have you used that?" was all she said before going back to sulking again.

"Can't you at least try to enjoy yourself?" he wondered.

"No," she replied. "I don't want to."

"Okay, then. Tomorrow, we'll try something different."

"No, we won't. There won't be a tomorrow," she replied, resolutely.

Seiji just chuckled. "Oh, you'll change your mind."

"No I won't."

Seiji just stood up and laced his fingers with hers. "Sure you will. I'm hard to resist."

"Keep flattering yourself," she said, moving away. "Aang never did anything like this."

Seiji released a frustrated sigh. "Aang, Aang, Aang," he cried. "He's all you ever talk about. I'm not him, in case you haven't noticed."

"Believe me, I have noticed."

Why are you even with him?"

"Why am I with him?" she repeated, furious. "Why am I with _you_?"

"Isn't it obvious?" he wondered. "I'm way better than him. He might be the Avatar but he's got nothing. I've at least got a family and I'm well off."

"You're kidding, right? You think after a few hours with you, which I did not enjoy, I'm supposed to miraculously fall in love with you and be your girlfriend. What kind of girl do you think I am?"

"It'd be better than being with him," Seiji muttered. "I saw him earlier today, surrounded by all those girls. He looked like he was having fun because he wasn't trying to leave."

"Because unlike you, he's too polite to do that."

"Unlike me?" Seiji bellowed. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Exactly what it sounds like," she replied, evenly.

"You don't mean that," he said earnestly, keeping his temper in check.

"I do," Katara replied, forcefully. "You're a jerk." She was about to walk off, but Seiji stopped her.

"Excuse me? I'm a jerk? I'm not the one who…" He was interrupted when someone paused to tap him on the shoulder and he whirled around to find a lanky warrior and another dark-haired girl standing behind him. "What?" he demanded. "Can't you see I'm busy here?"

The older boy nodded. "Yeah, but that's my sister," he said, pointing at Katara. "So if I were you, I'd stop bothering her because she has a pretty nasty temper."

Seiji laughed sheepishly. "Does she?"

Sokka nodded. "Yeah and if she doesn't finish you, I will."

"Please," Seiji scoffed. "I'm a waterbender training to become a master. I can take you."

"I'd like to see you try," Katara snapped, brushing past him. "Go home, Seiji."

Muttering something inaudible under his breath, the other waterbender glanced at Sokka and Suki behind him, before shoving his hands in his pockets. "See you around, Katara." He called before disappearing in the opposite direction. Wordlessly, Katara followed Sokka and Suki home. Sokka wanted to ask her what had happened, but he decided to wait until they were indoors before asking since she didn't look like she was in such a good mood. The minute the front door had shut, he brought it up.

"So, why were you with that jerk? Where's Aang?"

"I don't know. Why don't you ask his seven hundred girlfriends?" she replied before grabbing some food and stalking out into the backyard.

Sokka just gave Suki a quizzical look. "You don't think…?"

"No, Sokka," she replied. "Get real."

At that moment, the front door burst open and Toph stormed in with Aang following close behind.

"You're lucky I won, Twinkle Toes," she said, slamming the door shut. "I'd have held you responsible if I had lost that contest."

"Hey, I didn't even do anything," the airbender protested.

"What happened?" Suki wondered.

Toph smirked. "Twinkle Toes got mobbed by a bunch of girls. It was pretty funny until he almost ruined my earthbending tournament."

"Sorry," the airbender apologized. "But how was I supposed to know you tournament was there? Aren't they usually kept hidden."

"Usually," Toph muttered. "Doesn't matter, though. I still won even in spite of you running through the arena with a hundred girls chasing after you."

"Shouldn't you let other people try?" Suki wondered. "I mean, you've won every tournament there is, right?"

"Yeah, pretty much," Toph said, grinning. "But I can't help it. It's so much fun."

"Not for the benders on the other end," Sokka pointed out and they all burst out laughing.

While Toph continued to talk to the two warriors, Aang wandered outside, surprised to find Katara standing by the small pond and staring off into space. Her half eaten meal was lying on a plate next to her and she didn't look too happy. He wondered if she'd be mad at him.

"Worst day of my life," she muttered, kicking a pebble into the pond.

"But the day isn't over yet."

It was only then Katara noticed Aang's reflection distorted by the ripples the pebble created. She turned around to face him.

"But it's nighttime," she protested. "What else could we possibly do?"

"There's one thing," he replied. "I know it probably won't make up for what happened today, but it's still worth a shot. Come on."

They took Appa to a small island in the distance. It was completely uninhabited but it was breathtaking all the same. Several waterfalls fed into a seaside lagoon and the entire place was blooming with exotic flowers. The treetops were decorated with exotic fruits in an array of colors and the sandy beaches were littered with colorful sea shells of all different shapes and sizes.

"This place is amazing," Katara said, drinking it all in. "But should we really be here?" She pointed to a signpost in the distance. In big, red letters someone had etched the words Private Property.

"Its fine," Aang replied. "We won't get in trouble."

"Is this place yours then?" she wondered. Aang shook his head. "Zuko's?"

"No." Aang replied. He just took her hand and led her closer to the signpost.

"Then how will we…?" The words died in Katara's mouth when she saw her name etched on the signpost in beautiful script next to the word island. She buried her face in her hands. "Please tell me you didn't."

Aang grinned. "I might have pulled a few strings."

"But an island?" she cried, giving him an incredulous look. "How am I supposed to top this?"

"You don't have to," he replied, honestly.

"But why on earth did you get me an island?" she demanded.

"You love beaches," he said simply. "And some official was going to give this to me anyway but between the South Pole, Kyoshi Island, Ba Sing Se, and the four Air Temples, I have more than enough places to stay, so I convinced him to let you have it. And today was kind of a lousy day, so I figured this might somehow make up for it."

"It's a bit extreme, don't you think?" she laughed. "Most guys would just give a girl a flower or sweets or something."

Aang smiled. "I know, but I figured this would be way better. And since it's yours, you can do whatever you want with it, so if you don't like it, you don't have to keep it."

"You're insane if you think I'm trading this for something else," Katara said. "How many other girls get an island?"

"Probably not many," Aang laughed. "But I'm glad you like it."

"Why did you get one for me?" she asked, softly. "It's not like I really deserved it after I just left you this evening."

"I thought you'd be mad at me," he sheepishly admitted, rubbing the back of his head. "I tried to find you all evening, but I couldn't."

She shrugged. "It's okay. You probably wouldn't have wanted to, anyway. Some jerk kept following me around and he was pretty offended when I kept comparing him to you."

"I think I may have offended a lot of those girls when I said I was supposed to be spending the day with you. I'm sorry that I didn't."

"It's okay," she replied, smiling. "This more than makes up for it."

She stared up at the midnight blue sky flecked with sparkling stars and gave a contented sigh.

"Remember how I said this was the worst day ever?" Katara asked, turning to face Aang. The airbender nodded. "It just became the best day ever. Thank you," she whispered, hugging him. "I'm probably not even worth all this trouble."

Aang gave a soft laugh when he felt a few of her tears soak through his robes. "You're welcome," he replied, giving her a gentle kiss. "And just so you know, you are worth it."

* * *

_I'm still working on one more request, so I'll try to post it ASAP. And once again, thanks for all the reviews I've gotten so far. You're all wonderful :)_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	58. Trapped

_I've been a horrible writer. I got this request a month ago but I'm only posting it now. All credit for this idea and chapter title go to Sylvanna (thanks for the idea and sorry for such a long wait!). I hope it's alright. Enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own ATLA._

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**LVIII. Trapped**

_"And finally Winter, with its bitin', whinin' wind, and all the land will be mantled with snow."_

~ Roy Bean

Winter in the North Pole was unpredictable and deadly; it gave no warnings of snow and storms. The people of the Northern Water Tribe (and even those of their sister tribe) were used to such conditions, but that didn't mean that winter didn't catch them off guard sometimes. Sometimes, like now, when winter raged full force and threw all it could at the people living in the large, prosperous tribe, people were unprepared. Once every few years, after a relatively warm summer, the Poles would get hit with hard winters. The endless onslaught of snow from blizzards often kept the citizens of the Northern and Southern Water Tribes holed up in their houses for days on end. While the men worked on ensuring their families' protection, the women often spent their time doing their household duties as rapidly as they could before sewing and knitting in front of the hearth while their children played as best as they could huddled in layers of blankets. Usually, the citizens were well prepared for the harsh weather, but this year, they had gotten sidetracked with the upcoming peace conference that was to be held in the Northern Water Tribe, so much so that they had neglected to fortify their houses and collect supplies in case winter proved to be a hard one. And hard it certainly was. Blizzards came so often, the people easily lost count. Suddenly, the peace conference didn't seem to matter because when winter finally laid claim to the Northern Water Tribe, she came full force.

Katara had learned to appreciate many things in life, but she had never really appreciated firebending all that much until now. Like any element, there was both a good and a bad side to fire but in spite of that, Katara was fiercely glad that Zuko and Aang were firebenders, because at the moment, their firebending was keeping them alive. Zuko and Aang were supposed to attend the peace conference along with Chief Arnook and had come early for the sole purpose of helping the Chief with preparations, but it seemed as if nature had other plans for the citizens of the bustling city. The blizzards that usually struck didn't last very long, but it seemed that just as the snow was cleared from one blizzard, another one came. Still, everyone, except for Toph, Suki, Zuko, and Mai, was used to such cold weather. Even Aang seemed well adapted to the cold. Growing up in the Southern Air Temple which was at a rather high altitude, it seemed only natural that he'd be used to the frigid conditions that also plagued the Water Tribes in either of the two poles. The only thing he probably wasn't used to was the never ending blizzards that seemed to swarm the Northern Water Tribe.

It had been two days since the last blizzard started and since then, the snow had been falling nonstop and the winds had been howling. The blizzards never lasted longer than four or five days, but it seemed like hardly a day passed before the next one came. Most of the people used the short break to stock up on supplies before the next storm came, but trade between the Northern Water Tribe and other regions had been temporarily stopped since ships couldn't get into the icy ports with the raging storms. With no new supplies coming in, the people were mindful of how much they used. At first, it hadn't been too bad because it seemed like there would be plenty of fuel for the hearth, more than enough food, and plenty of water, but as the blizzards raged on, it became evident that there wasn't enough. It wasn't as if the people were starving, but food had to be rationed and the wealthier members who often enjoyed luxuries such as three course meals had to get by with only one course. It didn't seem so bad, until the snow trapped virtually everyone in. Aside from water, which could easily be made from snow if it ran out, almost everything else was running low.

It had been a while since Katara had gone out. The last time she had been out had been eight days ago, to help Sokka catch fish. Since then, she hadn't set foot out of the big house Chief Arnook had given them and now it was almost impossible to leave with a giant wall of snow nearly covering it. The snow was packed so densely in some places that it seemed to provide insulation from the raging winds. It wasn't enough, however, to keep the house completely insulated. After some time, the cold had bothered them so much that Sokka decided to shut all the doors in the house and use the common room to sleep. Being trapped in the house didn't allow for much anyway, he figured, and as long as they were all comfortable sleeping in the common room, Zuko and Aang wouldn't have to light the hearths in each room to keep everyone warm. Katara preferred this arrangement anyway since it was a lot warmer; needless to say, having an excuse to be closer to Aang was an added bonus. Even though the common room was large enough to accommodate all of them and more, it still felt cozy and since they were all in the same room with nothing to do but talk, they had plenty of time to spend with each other. Most of it passed in story telling or playing some sort of game that didn't involve them leaving the confines of the multiple blankets they were wrapped in, but occasionally, Zuko, Aang, or Katara would brave the cold to get more firewood from the large pile outside their house. Theoretically, their bending should have given them an advantage in such conditions, but it didn't do much. Sometimes, Zuko even thought that the Breath of Fire was useless in such cold as it barely kept him warm.

"What do these delegates have against the heat?" Toph grumbled, wrapping a mass of blankets tighter around her slender frame. "They couldn't possibly have chosen a colder place for this meeting which, by the way, probably won't ever happen."

"You're probably right," Suki said, glancing out the window. Most of the window was covered with snow, but a small portion wasn't. Outside, she couldn't see much, other than a swirling mass of white.

"I always thought summer in the Fire Nation was bad," Mai said, listening to the winds wail and howl. "But this is worse."

"Tell me about it," Sokka said, shivering as he tried to get warm. "I haven't had a decent meal in ages."

"Me too," Zuko said. "I could really use some of uncle's tea right now."

"We don't have any," Mai reminded him. "We finished all the tea we had when the last blizzard came."

"If I had Appa, we could probably go somewhere warmer," Aang said. "But I didn't bring him because Chief Arnook sent a boat."

"It's alright," Suki said. "This isn't _so_ bad."

"Speak for yourself," Toph said, teeth chattering. "I'm frozen and I can't even see anything on this chunk of ice."

"What's there to see?" Mai asked, leaning against Zuko.

"The city's nice," the young Firelord admitted, shivering a little as he spoke. "It's reminds me of home a little. It would be a lot nicer, though, if it wasn't snowing so much."

"What are we going to do about supplies?" Suki wondered, watching the snow fall harder.

Sokka yawned. "I don't know," he admitted. "We're low on everything except firewood but I'm too tired to think properly now. We have just enough food for breakfast so we'll worry about it tomorrow. For now, getting some rest is probably the best thing we can do."

"If you say so," Toph muttered, shuffling to her corner of the room and crawling into her sleeping bag. Within minutes, she was fast asleep and snoring. Sokka and Suki followed her example and went to sleep but Zuko and Mai were talking to each other in hushed tones. Katara was too cold to attempt a conversation at the moment, despite being curled up next to Aang, huddled in layers of thick blankets, and her proximity to the fire. It seemed like no matter how many layers she wore, she couldn't get reasonable warm unless she was bundled up in her parka. But it was currently drying at the moment after being washed and cleaned.

"I wish these blizzards would stop," she said, stifling a yawn and mustering enough strength to talk.

"Me too," the airbender replied, shivering and watching Zuko wildly gesture something to Mai who looked like she was falling asleep.

"I wonder what it's like back home," Katara murmured. "I bet Dad and Gran are worried sick. I guess it's a good thing Dad didn't come here after all."

Aang nodded, using a small amount of firebending to keep himself warm. "Yeah. It's probably better at the South Pole."

"You think the storms will let up long enough for supplies to come in?"

"I hope so, because we're probably not the only ones low on supplies."

"And if they don't?" Katara wondered, crawling into her sleeping bag beside Aang.

"Don't worry," he said, giving her a quick kiss. "We'll figure something out. I bet Sokka already has a plan."

"I hope so," the waterbender whispered before drifting off into a dreamless sleep.

The following morning dawned gray, bleak, and unbearably cold. Sokka built the biggest fire he could short of setting the house on fire and Katara gathered every last blanket that could be found and after breakfast was eaten, the seven friends sat huddled by the hearth.

"I wish I was home," Toph said, drawing the mass of blankets over her head. "At least I'd be warmer and I'd be able to see."

"I don't know how the people of the Water Tribes put up with the cold," Mai said, rubbing her hands for warmth. "It's not that fun."

"It's usually not usually like this," Sokka said, shivering. "Usually, we're prepared."

"We're not now," Katara pointed out. "We have no food or water and we're going to run out of firewood if we use as much as we've been using."

"Yeah, I know," Sokka admitted. "And I have a plan, but it's not the best one."

"At this point, I think anything will do," Zuko said, huddling closer to Mai. "What do you have in mind?"

"Toph has her meteor bracelet and Mai has her knives, so between the two of them getting ice for water should be easy."

"What about us?" Suki demanded.

"Since you're good at climbing walls, you, Zuko, and Aang can use snow to patch up any holes and stuff on the roof and the other cracks around the house. Meanwhile, Katara and I are going to go fishing. Aang's got enough food for himself, right?"

The airbender nodded.

"We'll have to work really fast," Sokka said. "It's not snowing now, but the next blizzard could come in a few hours."

"I think Aang should go with Katara," Toph said. "No offense, Sokka, but I'd like something to eat."

"I'm capable of catching fish," Sokka cried, indignantly.

"I never said you weren't," Toph replied, calmly. "I just think they'd catch more because Twinkle Toes can waterbend and you can't. Besides, it's probably safer if they go anyway. They'd have a better chance of making out of a snowstorm than if you went."

Sokka sighed. "Fine. But they'll probably catch half the amount Katara and I would have caught because Aang won't fish."

He was proven wrong, however, as the two returned several hours later with a net full of fish which Suki and Mai set to preparing while Sokka, Zuko, and Toph stored the rest in an unused storage room.

"Do you guys think you can make another trip?" Sokka wondered. "This isn't enough to last more than a week."

"We probably should," Katara said. "We'll be back soon."

"Stay safe," Sokka called as the two disappeared towards the ocean again. The snow was packed so thickly that their boots didn't even leave dents in the snow. In some places, it had turned to ice making it extra slippery. Despite Aang's agility and Katara's surefootedness, the two slipped countless times. By the time they had made it halfway to the shore, the sky had grown darker and a light snow was falling.

"Maybe we should go back," Aang suggested.

Katara looked up at the sky before wordlessly following him back towards their house. But the snow began falling faster and harder and within minutes, the visibility had dropped so that the two couldn't see what was front of them clearly.

"Which way is the house?" Katara wondered, growing increasingly aware of the drop in temperature and the numbness that was slowly creeping over her.

"I don't know," Aang admitted, fumbling with his mittens and trying to firebend to keep them warm. "But should we risk trying to find it in this weather?"

"Probably not," Katara replied. "But we can at least make a shelter to avoid freezing to death."

She and Aang used waterbending to manipulate the snow around them. It took them a while to make the igloo-like shelter because they were both tired and stiff from the cold, but when they were done, it was a lot warmer inside than it was standing out in the snow. Still, the cold seemed to penetrate through the walls of their makeshift shelter so they sat side by side, huddled in a corner, trying desperately to keep warm. It was too dark for them to see each other and too cold to even talk so they sat in silence for a while until Katara noticed that the airbender was unusually quiet.

"Aang," she cried, elbowing him. "Don't fall asleep. You could die."

"I'm awake," he replied. "But if this blizzard keeps up for hours, I don't know if I can stay awake."

Katara felt her stomach twist into a knot. She hadn't even thought about that. She was too tired to try and stay up through the night. She didn't know what time of day it was now since the blizzards gave no indication but she was positive that it was a few hours past their mealtime. She knew she wouldn't last through the entire night, either.

"What should we do?" she said.

"I don't know," he replied. "I've been caught in blizzards before, but nothing like this. What do you think we should do?"

Katara shrugged. "I've never been caught in a blizzard like this, either. But Dad always said to find shelter as soon as possible if we were ever caught in one. He also said not to fall asleep because most people who fall asleep in the cold never wake up. He said they usually die from frostbite and their bodies just shut down."

"Yeah, I've seen that happen to some people. There were some travelers that come to the Southern Air Temple once. They were going on some mountain climbing expedition. Twelve of them went up the Patola Mountains, and only four came back. The others didn't make it."

He felt Katara shudder beside him. "That's awful."

"I know. The monks tried to stop them, but they wouldn't listen."

"Has the snow stopped?" the waterbender wondered, changing the subject.

"No."

"Oh."

The two lapsed into silence after that. By now, whatever little light there was left had faded, leaving them in almost complete darkness. Aang knew he should have used his firebending for light and perhaps warmth, but he was too tired and numb to do anything but sit huddled in the dark. Katara occupied herself with trying to stay awake, but a short while later, both she and Aang fell asleep. Aang didn't know how it happened. One minute they had been wide awake and the next, he found himself waking up after dozing off. In the darkness, he couldn't see Katara or hear anything over the howling winds.

"Katara?" he tried, hoping she was still awake. There was no reply. "Katara, are you awake?" Again, there was no reply. Groping in the dark, he tried to find her. When he finally did, he gently shook her awake, breathing a sigh of relief when she answered him.

"I'm awake," she mumbled. "Frozen, but awake."

"I could light a fire," Aang suggested. "But it'd be really small."

"Don't bother," she said, leaning against him. "We should save our energy for when the snow lets up."

"I think it stopped snowing," he said, listening carefully. Outside it was much quieter, so the two broke through the icy walls of the shelter and stepped out into the chilly air. When they noticed the front door of the house just several feet away, they both exchanged amused glances. Despite how tired and hungry they were, they burst out laughing. All the noise attracted the attention of the others and it was only mere seconds before the front door was thrown open and Sokka rushed out.

"You're okay," he exclaimed, giving his little sister a hug. She nodded, smiling.

"Where were you two?" Zuko asked.

"Not too far," Aang replied, pointing to the shelter that was a few paces from the house. "But it was snowing and we couldn't see so we made a shelter."

"Did you get any fish?" Toph called from inside.

"Not exactly," Katara admitted. "But we could."

"We might not have to," Sokka said. "We might have enough after all."

"And he chooses to tell us this now," Aang muttered, following the Water Tribe warrior into the house. Katara just chuckled. She was glad they didn't have to go back out because it was much warmer indoors. By the time she and Aang had changed out of their cold, snow-soaked clothes and eaten their meals, another blizzard had struck. The others hardly gave it a thought and went to sleep and the two were surprised to discover that they had spent almost an entire day trapped in their makeshift shelter. They current situation wasn't much different, but being trapped in the house with supplies and surrounded by friends was infinitely better.

"I'd be happy if I never get caught in a blizzard again as long as I live," Katara whispered, as she and Aang crawled into their sleeping bags. Although they were separated from Toph, Sokka and Suki, and Zuko and Mai, she kept her voice low so she wouldn't wake the sleeping couples and the blind earthbender.

"You didn't have fun, nearly freezing to death?" Aang teased.

"No," she whispered back, shaking with laughter. "I didn't."

"Me neither," he said, laughing with her.

"Honestly, I was mildly insulted we almost froze to death," she admitted. "We've fought some pretty tough people before and managed to make it out alive, so it was irritating that we could have been killed by ice. And I've grown up around snow and ice my whole life, so I'd be pretty mad if I had died from snow."

Aang shook his head, smiling. "Only you would be mad about _how_ it happened. Most other people would just be upset that they nearly got killed."

She smiled. "I know."

Aang was about to reply when a particularly violent gust of wind shook the house.

Katara shivered but smiled. "I'm glad if we have to be trapped in here at all during these blizzards, we're all trapped together."

"You are?" He asked. She nodded, curling up beside him and sighing contentedly. "Why?"

"Because," she replied. "It's good to be able to do nothing once in a while. It's a nice change from how fast paced things have been before. And we all get to spend more time together."

Aang grinned. He had to admit, Katara had a point. Once Zuko and Mai went back to the Fire Nation, Suki to Kyoshi Island, and Toph to Gaoling there was no telling how busy they'd become and when they'd all be able to meet again.

"But you know what the best part of being trapped in these blizzards is?" she whispered, smiling at him.

"What?"

"Being trapped in it with you," she said, repressing a shiver.

He laughed. "By the time all these blizzards finish, you probably won't think that anymore."

He was partially right. The blizzards raged on for the next few days and Katara came to the sudden realization that she had gone from not minding the snowstorms to _loving_ them only because she and Aang were able to do everything together. Every day after their chores were done, they'd sit by the fire, wrapped in their blankets and talk. She found that as long as they were together, the bleak weather and the cold didn't really bother her. And when it did, Aang always used his firebending to keep them warm and Katara had never been more thankful that he could firebend.

"I'll miss the blizzards when they stop," she admitted, watching the flames crackle in the hearth, one night.

"The blizzards or this arrangement?" Aang wondered, referring to how they were all snowed in.

"Both," she replied, smiling.

"You only like it because I do all the work and you get to stay warm," he teased as she shivered a little and he wrapped his arms around her.

She laughed. "There are some perks that come with this arrangement; you doing all the work to keep me warm is just one of them," she teased.

"It's hardly work," he pointed out, smiling and giving her a chaste kiss. "I don't mind keeping you warm."

And as the blizzard raged on around them, the two sat wrapped in each other's embrace, enjoying every minute of being trapped together.

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_Thanks for all the reviews so far! I'm still working on a couple of requests from PandaLily22, Sam1247, and crisy93, so I'll try to post them ASAP :)_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	59. The Winter Solstice

_Um...I'm not really sure where this idea came from, but I was watching The Winter Solstice Part I when I got it. I know the likelihood of it happening is really slim, but I wrote it anyway. I hope it's alright. Enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I own nothing._

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**LIX. The Winter Solstice**

_"All you need is love."_

~ John Lennon

Growing up in the Southern Air Temple, Aang had never realized how lonely it could really be. A hundred years ago, the temple had been home to hundreds of airbenders and sky bison that being lonely was next to impossible but now that he and Katara were all alone, he realized the place was eerily foreboding. At least tonight, it was. The moon cast strange shadows into their room and the wind blowing through the eaves had a strange sound to it. Aang wished he was fast asleep like Katara was beside him, but he was too tense to sleep. Normally, the solstices didn't really bother him, but this was the first time since their wedding that he and Katara were in the Southern Air Temple during a solstice and he didn't need to be the Avatar to know that in spiritual places like the Southern Air Temple it was easy for spirits to leave their world and fairly easy for humans to cross into the spirit world if they tried; it certainly hadn't been too hard for Hei Bai to enter their world and take Sokka and some villagers all those years ago. So now he was up, wide awake and staring listlessly into space just waiting for the solstice to pass. He knew if Katara had been up, she would have either convinced him to try and get to sleep or spent the night up with him and he was thankful she wasn't because she deserved to rest. But the real reason he was grateful she was asleep was because he knew he wouldn't have to explain the real reason he was up and nervous. Was there any way to tell her that a spirit might come after her to get at him? It wasn't as if he could just say it without worrying her. He sighed to himself and suddenly wished he hadn't done something stupid by staying home instead of going to that meeting earlier that week. The world was relatively peaceful, so it wasn't as if he was neglecting his duties by missing some meeting regarding the agricultural benefits of leechee nuts. In any case, he knew he would have rather spent the day at home, regardless.

Beside him, Katara stirred and mumbled something incoherent. Aang kept silent, hoping she wouldn't wake up. If he couldn't get sleep, there was no reason she shouldn't but a minute later, she awoke with a start.

"Aang, are you still up?" she whispered, shifting her position, mindful of the small unborn child within her. Though it was still fairly small and barely noticeable that she carried it, she felt like every movement she made disturbed it though she knew that wasn't true.

"It's nothing," he lied. "You should go back to sleep."

She sat up and shivered a bit in the cool air and shook her head. "It doesn't look like nothing."

He sighed. "I guess I'm just nervous that we're here during the solstice."

"You're not afraid about some spirit coming in here are you?"

"Most spirits wouldn't bother with us, but there's one that might."

Now Katara's curiosity was piqued. "Who?"

"Koh," Aang said, so softly that she could barely hear him.

"Koh the Face Stealer? What makes you think he'd come here?"

He shrugged. "I haven't exactly been doing my duty as the Avatar. Remember all those meetings I skipped?"

She nodded. "I thought you said it was okay to skip them."

"I thought it was," he admitted. "I know the Avatar is supposed to keep balance and stuff but they weren't important meetings. They were just on trade between the different provinces in the Earth Kingdom and whether the Earth King should grow red or yellow flowers in his garden. It's not like I needed to be around for any of that but now I can't help but wonder if I should have gone after all."

"So why didn't you?"

"Because I didn't think I had to. It's not my job to choose what flowers should be planted in the Earth King's garden and stuff like that. And I wanted to stay here with you."

She gave a soft laugh. "You didn't have to. Besides, you shouldn't let me get in the way of your duties."

"You never have and you never will," he replied, wrapping an arm around her.

"We'll see," she replied, leaning against him. She didn't think she'd fall asleep after that, but a short while later she awoke to the sound of soft footsteps running across the floor. In the darkness, it was hard to make out much, so she tiptoed out of bed and searched the room. She wasn't expecting to find anything, but much to her surprise she found a strange light coming from one of the rooms. Lighting a candle, she slowly and carefully made her way through the dark corridors towards it.

The floor was cold beneath her bare feet and despite the layers she wore, she was a little cold. But now that she was wide awake, Katara though she might as well as investigate, but she experienced the fright of a lifetime when she felt someone grab her from behind.

"Could you be any quieter?" She demanded, turning to face Aang.

"Could you?" he returned. "What are you doing anyway?"

She pointed to the light. "I wanted to know where it was coming from."

Aang slowly opened the door and peered into the room. Over a hundred years ago, the monks had used the room for many of their rituals. It had been filled with statues and relics from days gone by, but now, it was mostly covered in dust and cobwebs. Katara pushed past Aang and surveyed the room.

"I bet these statues haven't been cleaned in over a century. We should really clean them one day." she said, brushing some dust off of them. Almost instantaneously, she vanished.

Aang sighed. "This is exactly why I don't like solstices," he muttered to himself before following Katara into the spirit world.

The spirit world was strange to say the least, but it was warm, so Katara wasn't complaining. But she was nervous about being there. Even when Aang joined her, she was uneasy. She'd heard enough about it from Aang and Sokka had told her at least a dozen times what it was like after Hei Bai had taken him there, so it wasn't as if she knew nothing, but everything looked so strange and confusing, the waterbender wondered how the few people who had ventured there managed to make it back alive.

"So this is what it looks like?" Katara mused. "Strange. I always imagined the spirit world would be different."

"You like it here?" Aang asked, incredulously.

"Not really," Katara admitted. "But it's interesting. So, how exactly do we go back? Do we just find another statue or something?"

Aang shrugged. "Getting in was always easier than getting out," he admitted. "But hopefully it shouldn't be too hard to get back."

They spent some time trying to find an exit but to no avail. Katara knew Aang was worried and now she was too, but there really wasn't anything to do other than wander around and look for a way to get back to their world. Katara didn't think it'd be too hard, but she realized that it was somewhat difficult because after a few hours, they wound up where they started. A light rain was coming down and without thinking, the two of them ducked into the nearest shelter they could find. Inside the cave, it was dim and cool but it was dry and it seemed like nothing else was there.

"Is the weather always like this?" Katara asked, referring to its unpredictability. In the natural word, even if weather was unpredictable, it gave a sign albeit subtly. But in the spirit world it had been sunny a minute ago, then raining lightly, but now it was raining incredibly hard.

"Honestly, I don't know. This is the longest I've been here."

Katara sighed. "This is all my fault; I'm sorry."

"Don't be," Aang replied, smiling. "I knew this might have happened especially since the boundary between the two worlds is practically nonexistent during the solstice. And it could have been worse."

"You think so?" Katara asked.

Aang was about to reply when a voice spoke up from the darkness.

"Well, if it isn't my old friend, the Avatar." From the darkness, the Face Stealer calmly addressed his guests who, for their part, were trying their hardest not to show any emotion. At that particular moment, Aang was trying not to show any fear but it was hard considering Katara was next to him. He wouldn't have minded if he had been with Koh alone, but now that Katara was with him, he was sure that the Face Stealer would jump at any opportunity he got to steal either of their faces.

"It's been a while, hasn't it, Aang?"

"It has," the airbender replied, emotionlessly. He was suddenly very grateful that he had mentioned being emotionless to Katara because she looked impassive next to him.

"What brings you here?" Koh wondered.

"The solstice," Aang said.

"And you brought a friend," Koh laughed, glancing at Katara. "I don't believe we've been properly introduced. I'm Koh and you must be Katara."

The waterbender gave a curt nod.

"Delighted. You know, it's been a while since I've added a baby's face to my collection," the Face Stealer said, grinning at her. Katara went rigid and Aang instinctively wrapped his arm around her.

"Oh, don't be so tense," Koh laughed, crawling towards them. "I was merely joking. Do come in. Standing in the rain can't be good for either of you."

"We're fine," Aang said and though she was surprised, Katara was careful not to show it. She wasn't used to seeing the airbender so emotionless and terse. She wasn't sure she liked seeing Aang this way or being this way herself because seeing him, or anyone really, devoid of any emotion was disconcerting.

"It's nice to know you've learned from past mistakes," Koh said to Aang, changing faces. "It would have been a shame if I had to punish you the same way I punished Kuruk."

"But I haven't done anything wrong," Aang pointed out.

"Yet," Koh chimed in. "But who's to say you won't?"

"He won't," Katara said, vehemently.

Koh's booming laugh echoed throughout the cave. "You seem so sure," he said, circling around her and smiling eerily in a way that made Katara want to shudder. "But he is only human, after all."

"So what?" she demanded, trying to stay emotionless.

"Mortals," Koh muttered, rolling his eyes. Katara nearly frowned but was quick to remember not to show any emotion.

"Perhaps you should have crossed over into the mortal world, like the ocean and the moon spirits," she suggested. "It might have done you some good."

"What good?" Koh demanded. "I always said that being a spirit was best. What good came out of the Avatar being human instead of a spirit?"

"Lots of good," Aang said. "And I'd much rather prefer being human than a spirit."

"But spirits are all-knowing and all-powerful."

"I'd still rather be human."

"Well, then I'm glad you're content with your lot," Koh snapped. "You're a fool for wanting to be human. Why would you want to put yourself through such torture?"

"Who said it was torture?"

Koh scowled and changed faces again.

"You've never been human so you've never experienced emotions," Katara said, suddenly realizing. "You've never really felt anything at all."

"I wouldn't want to," the Face Stealer scoffed. "I think it's pointless to feel."

"I think you're scared," she countered.

Koh drew himself up to full height. "Scared?" he hissed. "I am not scared. It's your kind who fears me."

"Because we feel," Katara replied. "We have something to lose by becoming detached like you. We're not always this emotionless."

"Well, perhaps it's best that way," Koh said. "I don't need to feel anything. In my line of work, it's not necessary."

"But…"

"Go back to your world. Live your lives, have kids, grow old, do whatever you want. Just leave me in peace," Koh cried, ushering them to the nearest exit. "Why must you humans meddle so much in matters that don't concern you?"

Koh had already disappeared when Katara and Aang exchanged amused glances before laughing.

By the time they returned to the Southern Air Temple, it was nearly dawn. Neither of them had ever been so glad to be back home and as soon as they returned, they stumbled to bed, tired and exhausted. Aang had never been so grateful to leave the spirit world because he had been sure that Koh would have tried something. But he had to admit, he was impressed by Katara. He would never a have been able to tell Koh anything that she had.

"You're amazing, you know that?" he said, giving her kiss.

She laughed. "You keep telling me that, but I haven't done anything."

"You just told Koh a bunch of things even I could never tell him. I really thought he was going to steal your face or something. I was starting to get worried." Aang said.

"I was actually terrified the whole time," Katara admitted, smiling a little. "But I kind of felt sorry for him. Did you notice how almost every face he wore looked sad?"

"No, because I was too busy worrying about you," he laughed. "But now that you mentioned it, I think you're right."

"I just felt bad that he couldn't feel like we do. He'll never know what it's like to be scared or feel pain or love or anything."

Aang nodded. "That's why I said I'd gladly be human. I can't imagine not being able to love."

"Why?"

"Then I couldn't love you and I find that hard to imagine," he said, simply.

"Well, I'm glad you're human too because I don't think we'd have met at all if you were a spirit." She laughed. "And if we hadn't met, I don't know what would have happened."

"Me either," he said. "But we don't have to worry about that because I'm not a spirit, we did meet, and I will always love you."

"I know," she smiled, laughing. "And I've never been happier."

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_Thanks for all the reviews so far. You're all amazing! I'm still working on requests from a few people so hopefully I can have those up soon :D_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	60. Homecoming

actually found time to post this. The idea is Sam1247's (thanks for letting me use it and sorry for such a long wait). I hope it's okay. Enjoy!

_Disclaimer: No, even after 60 chapters, I don't own anything ^^_

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**LX. Homecoming**

"_Family is just accident... They don't mean to get on your nerves. They don't even mean to be your family, they just are._"

~Marsha Norman

When compared to Omashu or Ba Sing Se, Gaoling wasn't really that big but it had sites that rivaled even some of the most beautiful houses in the other great cities of the Earth Kingdom. Unlike Ba Sing Se, Gaoling wasn't divided into rings and it didn't have an advanced mail system like Omashu, but the little city had plenty of other places that were easily ten times prettier than anything Omashu or Ba Sing Se could offer but as the Avatar and his friends sailed over the little city on Appa, a certain blind earthbender couldn't help but wonder what the city would look like now. She hoped the changes weren't too drastic.

The Bei Fong family mansion was secluded from most of Gaoling as were other prominent noble homes. Away from Gaoling's bustling market and financial district, the city almost seemed to sleep. It was mostly dark and not so much as a mouse stirred as Appa floated silently past the large estates towards the largest house in the city. On board the sky bison, most of the passengers were fast asleep. Zuko and Mai were sitting opposite Sokka and Suki and slept against the saddle. Katara had long ago abandoned them and had joined Aang, but even she too had fallen asleep. Besides Toph, Aang was the only one up. Momo lay curled up on Toph's lap as she absentmindedly stroked his fur. If she was being honest with herself, she would have admitted she was slightly nervous about seeing her parents after all this time. She wasn't afraid that they might shut her away from the world again; the remedy for that was simple enough. But she was a little afraid that they wouldn't accept who she was. She couldn't stand being treated like a helpless blind girl and she had promised herself that if her parents still treated her as such she'd make them see that she was anything but helpless.

When Appa landed in a secluded corner of the Bei Fong's vast estate, it was late at night. Only the light in one room in the mansion was lit and even the guards Toph knew her father to have on patrol were gone. She only sensed one or two on the far end of the estate.

"I should have probably changed my dress," the earthbender muttered, sliding off of Appa and landing on the ground. "My mom is going to have a fit if she sees me in this."

"You look fine," Katara said, yawning and rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

Toph smirked. "Wish I could say the same about you, but you're dead on your feet."

Katara couldn't argue with that. She was too sleepy to think of a comeback.

"Do you think we should come in?" Aang asked. "The last time we were here, your dad was kind of mad at us."

He expected Toph to chide him for not thinking more like an earthbender but much to his surprise, she didn't.

"He was pretty mad," she noted. "And according to those wanted posters you guys read me, my parents think you kidnapped me, so they might be pretty upset but I don't think you should be too worried. After all, you are the Avatar and you did stop Ozai so it's not like they can threaten to hand you over to the Fire Nation or anything."

"I know, but I'd feel a lot better if your parents didn't hate me."

"You just might wish they did," Toph said, walking up the steps and banging on the door. On the other side, she could distinctly hear her father grumbling.

"Who on earth has the nerve to knock so loudly at this hour? I won't stand for this," Lao Bei Fong grumbled, fiddling with the lock. "Whoever is there, better be gone in five minutes or I'll have my guards earthbend you to…Toph?"

In his nightgown, standing with his mouth wide open and staring at his petite, blind daughter with wide eyes, Lao Bei Fong certainly looked funny. But, thankfully no one, not even Toph who found her father's expression hilarious, laughed.

"Who is it?" Toph heard her mother ask. "Lao, who is at the door at his hour? Can't you just send them…Toph?"

The blind earthbender repressed a sigh and braced herself for the giant hug her mother gave her.

"Oh, Toph," Poppy Bei Fong cried, laughing just a little too loudly for Toph's tastes. "You're finally back. Goodness, what are you wearing?"

Toph just gave Katara a glance before turning back to her mother. "Good to see you too."

"We were so worried after you were kidnapped."

"I ran away," Toph corrected. "No one kidnapped me. I went because I wanted to."

"It must have been awful," Poppy said, stroking her daughter's hair.

"I had fun," Toph shot back. "It wasn't awful."

"But what did you do?"

"Can't we talk about it later?" the blind earthbender demanded. "You should give them rooms."

For the first time, Poppy and Lao noticed a sleepy group of people standing on their doorstep.

"Of course," Poppy said. "Do come in, Avatar and…"

Toph sighed and introduced the others.

"It's an honor to meet the Firelord," Lao said, bowing to Sokka. "I've never seen you before, sir, but I've heard many things."

"That's Sokka, Dad, Katara's brother; you've seen him before. He's the Firelord." Toph pointed to Zuko who was fidgeting awkwardly beside Mai.

Lao glanced in the direction Toph pointed in and Zuko smiled.

"But…how did you know he was standing there?" her father demanded.

"I'll explain later," she promised. "But you better give them rooms first so they don't fall asleep here."

Toph's parents nodded and showed their guests to their quarters before retiring to their own. Morning couldn't come soon enough, but when it did, Poppy and Lao practically brought breakfast to Toph and begged her to tell them all that happened. She wasn't really given much of a choice, so after she had eaten breakfast, gotten ready, and made sure her parents hadn't forgotten about her friends, she told her parents everything that happened. The others were mildly surprised that Toph was being slightly more docile with her parents, but in any case, neither of them told her that.

"So you can see me?" Lao asked, shocked once Toph had finished.

"No, but I can sense you through my earthbending."

"Goodness," Poppy exclaimed. "You poor thing. That must be dreadful."

Toph scowled. "No, it's not. I actually like it. With earthbending, I'm not completely helpless like you think I am."

"Toph, perhaps you shouldn't earthbend so much," Lao said, gently. "It might be too taxing on you."

"I'm fine," she retorted.

"But Toph," Poppy protested.

Toph groaned. "I knew you guys wouldn't understand."

"But we do," her parents exclaimed in unison.

"Hardly," Toph muttered, storming off.

"Was it something we said?" Poppy asked, turning to her husband. He merely shrugged and the two ran after their daughter.

"They haven't changed at all, have they?" Sokka chuckled, watching as the couple disappeared down the corridor in search of Toph.

"No," Aang agreed. "They haven't. But I'm still surprised her parents haven't yelled at me for kidnapping her or something."

"They're probably too happy she's back," Mai said, fiddling with one of her knives. "My mom always makes a fuss over me whenever I go back to visit."

"So, where do you think Toph went?" Suki asked, watching Poppy and Lao run around the house with several of their servants following them and calling Toph's name.

All eyes turned to Aang.

"Why is everyone looking at me?" he demanded.

"Because you'd know from her vibrations," Zuko said.

"She's not in the house, if that's what you're wondering."

"Then where is she?" Poppy wailed, coming into view and dabbing her eyes with a handkerchief.

"I'm sure she's fine," Sokka said.

"No. My daughter is fragile and…"

"I'm sure she's fine," Sokka interjected. "She's taken down some of the toughest benders and she taught Aang earthbending, like she said."

"I think I still have the bruises to prove it," Aang said.

"I think you must have her mixed up for someone else," Poppy said. "My daughter may have done all the things she claimed, but she must have been terrified."

Sokka was about to say something but he decided against it and shut his mouth.

"Would you like us to look for her?" Suki wondered.

"How thoughtful!" Poppy exclaimed. "If it wouldn't be too much trouble, could you? I'm sure she'll listen to you."

Suki just smiled and led the others out of the estate.

"Finally, something to do," Mai said. "I thought I was going to die from boredom."

It took them a while to locate the blind earthbender, but in the end they had convinced Toph to return home. Needless to say, she wasn't very happy when her parents started fussing over her, especially her mother. She was in a foul mood all day and so, when Poppy came to reason with her, she was surprised to find Katara already trying to persuade Toph to at least give her mother another chance.

"I just can't," Toph said, angrily. "I can't stand being treated like a helpless little girl. And don't say my mother means well; you wouldn't know because you didn't grow up with a mother." She sighed when she realized what she had just said. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like that.

"I know," Katara replied, smiling a little. "But you're right and that's why I'm trying to help you. Your parents really do care; they just have an odd way of showing it."

Toph sighed. "Thanks for your help, but I don't think anything will get them to change their minds."

"You never know," Katara said, mysteriously.

Later that evening, as Poppy and Lao worriedly paced back and forth after Toph had wandered off with Sokka, Suki, Zuko, Mai, and Aang to the local earthbending tournament, Katara sat silently in their sitting room and fidgeted. A short while ago, Poppy had been asking her about her talk with Toph but now she and Lao were just worrying incessantly about their daughter and Katara wished they would stop. It wasn't as if Toph was in any danger.

"I'm sure she's fine," Katara offered, but Poppy kept wringing her hands.

"I hope so," Lao muttered.

"Do you really think she is?" Poppy asked, hopefully.

"Honestly, I'm sure she's at some earthbending tournament winning every prize there is to be won."

At this, Poppy nearly fainted. "Tournaments? I thought she knew only basic breathing exercises."

Katara sighed. She wondered if Poppy retained anything that Toph had told her since their arrival.

"Maybe you should talk to her about it," the waterbender suggested.

"Why do you care?" Lao demanded.

"Because I lost my mother and nearly lost my father. My mother was killed in a Fire Nation raid and my father left to fight in the war. Toph shouldn't have to know what it's like to lose a parent, especially when both of you are around."

"Lose us?" Poppy said. "I don't follow. I thought she already hates us for caring about her."

"She doesn't hate you," Katara clarified. "She knows she hurt you when she ran away, but she's also not a baby that needs someone to blow on her food when it's hot. Toph's the strongest earthbender I know; she really is the greatest earthbender in the world."

"Our Toph?" Poppy echoed. Katara nodded. "It can't be."

"I can prove it," the waterbender said, suddenly. Without waiting for a reply from the two, she handed them a crumpled piece of paper she had found in Toph's room and told them she was going to the earthbending tournament and if they wanted proof, they should come. She didn't think they would, but much to her surprise, Poppy and Lao hurriedly went after her.

The stadium was a little too noisy for their tastes, but the two endured it all and sat beside Katara and the others and simply watched. Lao had seen a brief display of his daughter's earthbending, but nothing like this. Toph, his petite, blind, daughter, was throwing her opponents who were easily twice her size right out of the arena. She was undefeated. Beside him, his wife was watching with wide eyes, drinking it all in.

"Are all these people cheering for Toph?" Poppy asked. Katara nodded. A strange expression crossed the older woman's face. Was it odd that a bunch of strangers were cheering for her daughter and that she wasn't? Most of these people didn't even know Toph yet there were people betting on her victory and people praising her. Poppy suddenly smiled. Tapping the nearest person next to her, she gleefully and proudly explained that the current undefeated champion was her daughter. At first, Lao just watched her in utter disbelief, but a short while later, he too was bragging about his daughter. By the time the tournament was over, nearly every citizen in Gaoling must have known that the Blind Bandit was in fact the rumored daughter of the Bei Fongs.

By the time Toph returned home, she was completely baffled. A short while ago, her parents had been fussing over her and claiming that she was too fragile to do earthbending, but now they were practically asking her to show them every move she knew, even if it meant destroying their estate. When she asked who had convinced them to come, all pointed to Katara.

Toph just shook her head and smiled. "I should have known."

"I'm sorry," Katara apologized. "But I had to try something. Maybe I am crazy and spend a little too much time obsessing over having a family and stuff, but it's important and it's not like you wanted to hurt you parents, so I figured maybe I'd try to get them to change their minds about you. I didn't know they would do that," she admitted, pointing to Lao yelling at the delivery boy that his daughter was the greatest earthbender in the world.

Toph chuckled. "It's okay, but I appreciate it. There's just one problem, though."

"What?" Zuko wondered.

"I just wanted them to see I wasn't helpless, not tell the whole world I'm the Blind Bandit. How am I going to stop my parents from doing the exact opposite now?"

And as her parents went on bragging about their daughter, Toph supposed their sudden transformation, like Zuko's had been, was just something she was never meant to understand and something that she would just have to accept and get used to. Somehow, she was entirely okay with that. Her parents may have been just the slightest bit crazy, but she certainly didn't love them any less.

* * *

_Thanks for all the reviews and suggestions I've gotten so far. I'm still working on requests, so I'll try to post them ASAP. :)_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	61. Disappear

_I know I should be working on all the requests I got, but I had this idea and I just had to write it and post it before I forgot it. I hope it's okay. Enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar._

* * *

**LXI. Disappear**

"_If the people we love are stolen from us, the way to have them live on is to never stop loving them._"

~ Unknown

"I can't believe summer is over," Katara said, staring out the window at the sunlit yard outside. Beyond the little garden that she tended to, the autumn weather was slowly taking over the land. Already, the yard was littered with leaves and whatever leaves remained on the branches of the trees were changing colors before drifting down to the earthen floor. Beyond the hedge that encircled the property, the grasses of the rolling hills were slowly losing their green color and turning yellow. The wildflowers that often sprung up between the blades of grass were slowly wilting and the gentle breeze was cooler and had a bite to it. Still, Katara wasn't too sad to see the summer go. The heat had been a little too much this year and the cool weather was a welcome respite. But despite her fondness of the cold weather that was soon to come, she didn't like the gloomy weather that often kept everyone indoors. More often than not, the rain that came weekly left everyone, including her children, cooped up inside and wanting to go out. Though the children never complained, Katara and Aang knew that they were often bored being inside on the rainy days, especially when Aang and Katara were busy. Even in spite of having their grandfather over, the three little children never seemed to have much to do once their bending practice was finished. But, on days like this, when one of their parents was home, it was readily apparent that the kids were having the time of their life.

Hakoda watched on, an amused expression on his face, as Katara chased after her children. Somehow, daily lessons had transformed into the game Tenzin affectionately referred to as "Escaping the Tickle Monster." The Tickle Monster, he claimed, was the best game ever and Hakoda just had to look at his grandchildren's faces to know they loved every minute of this game. It was probably because it was the only time Katara let them run around the house and because it was one of the few games she enjoyed playing with them. And as his daughter passed by him again in pursuit of her little airbender, Hakoda couldn't help but laugh. He remembered a time not too long ago when he had done something similar with Katara and Sokka. As little kids, they would have him chase them around the village and when he got too close, they'd pelt him with snowballs.

"Tickle Monster," he heard four year old Tenzin screech as Katara caught him. He shrieked with laughter and tried to wiggle out of her grasp as she mercilessly tickled him. Kya and Bumi were watching with amused expressions as their mother tickled their brother, but they were surprised when she turned to them and began tickling them too. In no time at all, the house was noisy with the laughter of the three little kids. When their game finally ended, the four of them sat down, exhausted. But the three kids weren't quite done yet. Exchanging knowing glances, they all tackled their mother and attacked her with hugs, screaming and laughing when she managed to get away and run around the house with her kids chasing after. Hakoda watched them for some time until he remembered the hour.

"Katara," he called. "Don't you have somewhere to be?"

She skidded to a halt in front of him and nodded. "I almost forgot," admitted, putting on her coat and slipping on a pair of shoes.

"So I noticed," Hakoda chuckled.

"They're all yours, Dad." She said, giving her father a quick kiss. "Be good, kids."

Hakoda just watched her leave and smiled.

As soon as Katara was out of sight, his grandchildren turned towards him.

"Hey, Grandpa?" Tenzin asked, clambering up to sit on his grandfather's lap. "Where's Grandma?"

Hakoda sighed. He knew sooner or later the kids would ask about his wife. As far as he knew, Aang and Katara hadn't told them the truth yet. The last time they had asked, they had been too young to understand.

"She's not here," Hakoda said, hoping that would satisfy their curiosity. He had no qualms telling them the truth about the late Kya, but they weren't his children and it was really up to Aang and Katara to decide when to tell them.

"Doesn't she love us?" Bumi asked, sitting beside him and looking up at him with wide eyes.

"Of course she does," Hakoda said. "She just can't be here."

"But why not?" Kya demanded.

"Has your mother ever told you what your grandmother did?" Hakoda asked. His grandchildren shook their head. He sighed. Perhaps telling them now wouldn't be such a bad idea after all. They deserved to know the truth, in any case.

"Long before you three were born," he said. "When the war was still going on, there were lots of problems between the Fire Nation and the other nations."

"What kind of problems?" Bumi inquired.

"Back then, the Fire Nation wanted to rule the world and…"

"Dad said he just wanted to change it," Kya interrupted and Hakoda smiled. So Aang hadn't simplified the story for them, he noted. No reason to do so now, then.

"Firelord Sozin did want to change it, but his goal was to have not four nations but just one. He thought since the Fire Nation was doing so well, they should share their prosperity with all the other nations."

"Didn't they have posperity?" Tenzin asked, stumbling over the word.

"They did," Hakoda replied. "But Firelord Sozin thought they could have even more if he made the Fire Nation bigger."

"That's when he killed all the airbenders, right?" Bumi asked.

Hakoda nodded. "All except your father."

"Then what?" all three wondered.

"After that, Firelord Azulon took over. He continued Firelord Sozin's work. He was the Firelord that sent the Southern Raiders to our tribe."

"Who were they?" Kya asked, making a face. "They don't sound nice."

"They weren't," Hakoda admitted. "They were a special group of firebenders who were used to attack the South Pole and the Earth Kingdom. One day, while your Uncle Sokka and your mother were playing outside and while your grandmother and I were busy with our work, we noticed black snow falling from the sky. That's when we noticed the Fire Nation's ships coming towards our tribe."

"What did they want?" Bumi asked. "It doesn't sound like they wanted to play with you."

Hakoda chuckled. "They certainly didn't. As soon as their ships docked, the firebenders just started attacking us. We managed to hold them off but they left really quickly."

"You won!" Bumi and Tenzin cheered.

Hakoda shook his head. "We didn't win."

"But Grandpa," Bumi protested, shifting his position slightly. "You kicked their butts. You totally won."

"We may have," he agreed. "But they killed your grandmother."

The three little children gasped and Hakoda hoped he hadn't been too blunt.

"Why?" Tenzin whispered, staring up at Hakoda with his silver eyes shining with tears. "Did they not want us to meet her?"

"It wasn't that," Hakoda said. "But they wanted your mother."

"What for?" Kya asked.

"She was the last waterbender in the Southern Water Tribe. The Fire Nation had taken away all the other waterbenders. But your grandmother wasn't going to let them take Katara, so she lied to them. She told them she was the waterbender and instead of taking her prisoner, they killed her."

"But why?" Bumi said.

Hakoda shrugged. "There will always be bad people, Bumi. They do what they think is right. If that man had stopped to ask your grandmother to prove it, he might have discovered she was lying and he might have taken and killed your mother. I really don't know."

"I'm sorry," his granddaughter said, giving him a hug.

"I am too," Hakoda replied. "But I have no doubt your grandmother would have loved you all if she ever met you."

"Did Mom and Dad name me after her?" Kya asked.

Hakoda smiled and nodded. She really was a perceptive girl, he mused.

Little Kya's eyes sparkled with determination. "Then I'm going to work hard to make her proud."

"She'd be proud of all three of you," Hakoda replied. "Now, why don't you three run along and do something more exciting? We wouldn't want you to get too depressed." The three children nodded and shuffled off, but Hakoda knew they were still pondering what he had said. He hoped the tale hadn't affected them too much, but they needed to know the truth at some point.

"I don't feel like playing anymore," Kya admitted, as the three siblings walked to their room.

"Kya," Bumi asked, tugging on his older sister's sleeve. "Is Mom going to leave us?"

The little waterbender stopped and stared at her brother, her blue eyes wide with surprise.

"I don't know," she admitted. "Why would she leave us?"

"What if some bad guy wants the three of us? What if she does what Grandma does?"

"I don't want Mama to leave," Tenzin choked in a whisper.

"She won't," Kya assured her brothers, but they could tell she was unsure. "Let's try not to think about it."

But even her reassuring words didn't calm their fears. They were dismal and glum even when their parents arrived. The hardly said a word during dinner and the adults seemed to sense something was wrong, but no one asked them about it. It wasn't until the three children had gone to their room to prepare for bed, that Aang asked them what was wrong.

"If something bad happened, would Mom leave us?" Bumi asked.

"What gave you that idea?" Aang asked, surprised.

His son shrugged. "I dunno."

"She won't leave," Aang replied, gently. "She'd never leave."

"What's going on in here?" Katara asked, entering the room with Hakoda close behind her. "Shouldn't you three be in bed? You've had a long day."

Much to her surprise, her children burst into tears and attacked her with hugs.

"Mama, are you going to leave?" Tenzin asked.

"What? Of course not," she replied, baffled. "Why would I leave?"

"You're not going to leave us like Grandma did, are you?" Kya whispered.

Katara's eyes widened. "Who told you about your grandmother?"

"They asked, so I told them," Hakoda admitted sheepishly. "You're not mad, are you?"

"No, Dad," Katara laughed, noting the worried expression on his face. "I'm not mad. You probably explained what happened better than I ever could."

Hakoda shrugged.

"So you're not going to leave us?" Tenzin clarified.

Katara knelt before them and smiled. "Tenzin, I'd never leave you three." The three little children sighed in relief. "But you have to understand something. I'd never leave you on purpose but…"

"If we don't practice our bending hard enough, you'll leave?" Bumi wondered.

"No," Katara laughed. "That's not going to make me leave. But I'll tell you all a secret. I haven't even told it to your grandfather yet." At this, Hakoda gave his daughter a puzzled look. "When I realized what your grandmother had done, I was just a tiny bit mad at her. I always thought she never should have lied to protect me; I always thought it wasn't her place to sacrifice herself for me. But, part of being a parent means protecting your kids. If something bad did happen, I would do anything to make sure you three were okay, even if it means sacrificing myself."

"But we don't want you to," Bumi whined. "Even if something bad happens and you get hurt, you can't leave us."

"It's not something you choose," she explained, gently. "Your father and I would do whatever it takes to make sure you three are safe. But you shouldn't worry about stuff like that because I can take care of myself if something bad happens. Besides, even if I can't, your father does a great job of protecting me. He'll always protect all of us, just like I will."

"Are you going to leave us too, then?" Kya asked, her blue eyes brimming with tears as she buried her face in the fabric of Aang's clothes. "Don't go."

He sighed and knelt down so he was eye level with his young daughter. "Kya, no one is going to leave, at least not willingly."

"But Mom said…"

"Someday when you're all grown up and have kids of your own, you'll understand. We'd never want to leave you, but if we were ever caught in a situation where doing what your grandmother did was the only solution, we'd do it. But that won't happen."

"Really?" Tenzin asked, hopefully and his father nodded.

"Promise?" Kya said.

"I promise," Aang replied, giving her a kiss. "You three should get to bed now."

"Can Grandpa tell us a story, first?" Tenzin pleaded.

"Pretty, pretty please?" Bumi added.

"That depends on whether or not your grandfather has learned how to resist you three," Katara teased. "One story, Dad. Don't let them talk you into telling them half a dozen like last time."

"Alright," Hakoda said, grinning. "But I'm telling you, they can be quite persuasive."

Kya, Bumi, and Tenzin eagerly climbed into bed and waited while their parents tucked them in. As soon as they were snuggled under the covers, they listened intently as Hakoda narrated some story about how their Uncle Sokka had done something hilarious. Katara laughed and left her children to her father and his storytelling.

"I wonder where on earth those three got that idea from," she said as she and Aang left the room.

"I don't know," he admitted. "But did you mean what you said?"

"About sacrificing myself if I had to?" She asked. Aang nodded. "I did."

"You know I wouldn't let you do that, right?"

"I know," she replied. "But it's not like I'll every have to resort to that. Like you said, nothing like that will probably happen. I wish it hadn't happened to my mother."

"I think she'd be proud of you," Aang offered. "You're an amazing mother."

"I'll never be half the mother she was," Katara muttered.

Aang just laughed. "That's not true and you know it."

"Well, I haven't exactly been a good mother if our kids think we might leave them, have I?"

"They were concerned about you dying for them," Aang reminded her. "Not that you'd actually leave them. And that has nothing to do with you being a good or bad mother. They were just scared they'd lose you."

Katara sighed. "I know. But they shouldn't have to worry about things like that at their age. It's not like I can actually do any of that."

"You can't?" Aang asked, surprised.

"Not with you around," she laughed. "You'd never let me."

He smiled. "I'd be an idiot if I did."

By then, Hakoda had finished telling the children their bedtime story and had said goodnight and gone to bed himself. Katara and Aang just checked on Kya, Bumi, and Tenzin before going back to their room.

"You know," she said, getting into bed. "When I was little, I always thought I'd marry a waterbender and end up having lots of girls. None of that came true."

"Do you ever wish it did?" Aang wondered.

"Never," she replied, smiling. "Our family is perfect just the way it is and I wouldn't trade it for anything else in the whole world."

* * *

_Thanks for all the reviews I've gotten so far. You're all amazing ^^. I'm still working on some requests from certain people so hopefully I can have those up soon. Thanks for being patient :)_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	62. The Heart of Darkness

_This is my failed attempt at a Halloween themed oneshot. Not really sure it's very halloween-ish, but whatever. I hope it's not too confusing. Enjoy!_

_Disclaimer:I don't own ATLA or the Joseph Conrad book whose's title I borrowed for this oneshot. (I've actually never read the book)._

* * *

**LXII. The Heart of Darkness**

_However, there is a locked room up there_

_It has all your bad dreams in it_

~Anne Sexton, Locked Doors

"Will someone remind me why we're going to a cursed house in the middle of nowhere for a party?" Sokka asked, watching the rolling plains of the Earth Kingdom's interior flash past them as their carriage rumbled ever closer to the large mansion in the distance. The tall towers of the castle like edifice seemed to shine in the silvery light of the full moon and Sokka had the feeling that they should turn back.

"It's a formality," Zuko said, rolling his eyes. "And it's not cursed. Who told you that?"

"Actually," Iroh piped up. "They say, in some of the locked rooms you can see things from the past."

"What kind of things?" Suki asked.

The General shrugged. "All sorts of things. Some people have claimed that they've seen loved ones from the dead, others say they've seen visions of the future, and some say they've seen monsters and spirits. But I've known the hosts for almost twenty years and I've been to see them in their new house once or twice before and nothing of the sort has ever happened to me. They're really nice. You'll see."

Sokka sighed and ignored his instincts as their driver brought the carriage to a halt in front of the massive stone structure. The multistory mansion looked even eerier up close and, as they ascended the large staircase to the imposing front door, Sokka hoped his instincts really were wrong this time.

Iroh exchanged a few words with a well dressed gentleman outside the door and their group was announced and led inside. The main foyer was glowing with light and there were a number of well dressed people socializing and roaming about. There were several butlers who were walking around offering various snacks and drinks and an elderly couple who was walking towards them. Iroh introduced them to his nephew and the others and for the first time since entering the house, Sokka really felt like there was no need to worry about curses, until Iroh brought up the subject again.

The host, a stout, prominent government official with white hair, laughed. "Oh, you children have nothing to worry about here," he assured them, noticing their worried expressions. "Our house isn't cursed; it's a common misconception. It's actually the old mansion next door that's said to be cursed and haunted. People go on and never come out. And at random hours, there are strange lights coming from within but no one has lived there for over a century."

"Uncle," Zuko said, peering out the large windows to get a better look at haunted mansion. "You should come see this. It looks like…"

"The house your mother's parents owned," Iroh finished, joining him and gazing up at the mansion in the distance.

"Is it possible for us to go in?" Zuko wondered.

"Certainly," the host replied. "The place is so old, the door is never locked. But I'd be careful if I were you and I'd advise the ladies not to go."

Suki smiled politely. "Oh, we'll be perfectly fine. But thank you for your concern. We shouldn't be gone too long."

The dilapidated mansion was actually quite large; looking up, Katara could easily count more than three dozen rooms and that was just one part of the building. It seemed like a palace itself, but the estate wasn't nearly as large as Zuko's palace. There was a rather spacious yard, but with no one to care for the garden, the wildflowers and weeds were encroaching upon the land slowly taking hold of the territory. An old, crumbled fountain had already fallen prey to vines and weeds and the centerpiece had fallen to the earthen floor and lay smashed into a thousand different pieces.

"So, your grandparents lived in this dump?" Toph asked, kicking a stone out off her path.

"Not here," Iroh said. "But in a place eerily similar to this. In fact, it was just like this only it was in the Fire Nation."

"So, why are we here?" Sokka demanded, as Zuko opened the front door and as they let themselves in.

"I just want to take a quick look around," Zuko replied. "We can leave in a minute."

The interior was mostly dark and dank. The entrance hall was a spacious area that was divided by a large staircase that connected the upper levels to the first floor. High above them, suspended beneath the vaulted ceiling and covered in cobwebs, was a broken chandelier that sparkled eerily as the silvery moonlight glinted off of it. It reminded Sokka of broken glass and without really knowing why, he shuddered and continued following Zuko and Iroh as they walked on. In some places, it was so dark Iroh, Zuko, and Aang had to use their firebending to light the way as they shuffled through the mansion. The moonlight cast strange shapes through the windows and the farther they went into the mansion, the more Sokka thought they should leave as soon as they could. He didn't like the odd place with its creepy statues, dust, and cobwebs everywhere. There were too many stairs for his liking and far too many creepy rooms. After fifteen minutes, far too long for Sokka's liking, they returned to the main entrance and Katara tried the front door.

"It's locked," she said, turning to face the others. "It won't open."

"I told you we shouldn't have come here," Sokka cried. "We're probably going to get hurt by the curse."

"I thought you didn't believe in spirits, Mr. Science-and-logic guy?" Katara said.

"Curses and spirits are two very different things," her brother replied, as Iroh and Zuko tried their hand at the door.

"That's odd," Iroh mused. "It won't budge."

"I guess we really are trapped then," Aang said, gazing at the dark interior.

"There're probably dozens of rooms here," Mai said. "There has to be something we can use to get out. So let's start looking."

"Why do I get the feeling that splitting up is a horrible idea?" Sokka muttered, as he followed Suki upstairs.

* * *

Aang shut the last chest and sighed. "There's nothing here but dust and bugs."

"I know," Katara replied, shutting another empty one. "I can't stand this place. It gives me the creeps. I wish we could just leave."

"Me too," Aang muttered. It would have been decidedly less creepy if they hadn't all been trapped in a place whose doors were known for not being able to lock. "But at least we're all together and we'll probably get out soon."

Katara nodded, but something told her it would be a while before they got out of the supposedly haunted mansion. She didn't know about Aang, but the longer they all spent within the confines of the house, the more she thought it really was haunted or cursed.

They spent the next few hours combing through each and every closet, drawer, and chest in every room they could, looking for something, anything, that would help them. More often than not, they came up empty handed but they searched relentlessly. At some point, without really knowing how, they had gotten separated and for the first time in a long time, Aang felt truly helpless. He hadn't the slightest idea where he was or where Katara was and he hated the thought of her having to wander this deserted, eerie place all by herself at night, but there wasn't really anything he could do other than to continue searching for helpful objects while simultaneously looking for the waterbender. Thus, he found himself in a rather large room filled with all sorts of chests and began examining them, while keeping his ears open for Katara. He thought he heard someone enter the room and closing a chest, turned to find a shadowy silhouette standing in the doorway. The moonlight and his firebending weren't bright enough for him to make out who the figure was, but he thought he had a good idea.

"Katara?"

The figure didn't respond and Aang was surprised to discover he couldn't really sense the person's vibrations. He knew it certainly wasn't a spirit because it wasn't semi-transparent like most of the spirits he had seen before. He was about to ask again, when the figure exhaled loudly and began firebending at him. Aang easily evaded the blasts and parried them, but the figure continued firebending until knocked down by a combination of firebending and earthbending from Aang. When the figure was up again, the airbender caught the glint of metal and as three metal disks whizzed through the air, he produced a gust of air strong enough to deflect them, but weak enough not to send them back and into his opponent. But his opponent fell to the floor with a thud all the same and when Aang was certain he wasn't going to be attacked, he cautiously approached his assailant. There, lying on the floor before him, his opponent took an all too familiar form and Aang suddenly felt sick. Kneeling down and hoping against hope he was wrong, he gently turned the figure over. Long brown locks of hair fell away to reveal a rather pale Katara with three metal disks lodged firmly within her, two through her side and one through her heart. Aang gasped and shrank back. Was it even remotely possible that his opponent had been Katara? His conscience automatically ruled it out because his opponent had been able to firebend, but that still didn't explain how the waterbender was lying before him with the very same weapons that he had deflected, in her. It wasn't just an illusion either; he'd felt her cold skin against his and his hands and the fabric of his clothes were now stained crimson; it really was Katara lying before him. Was it all just the universe conspiring against him, having him accidently (there was no way in any world he'd do it on purpose) kill the very same person he'd sworn and strived to protect for so long? He buried his face in his hands and shuddered. This had to be some cruel, twisted joke, some sort of strange nightmare. He couldn't have killed her; he could barely kill a fly. So why, assuming some higher power was responsible for this and was using him as a puppet, was he made to kill the one person he loved more than life itself? When no answers came, he took a deep breath and prepared himself to survey the scene once more, to see if there had been someone else who was responsible for this twisted situation. But, much to his surprise, there was nothing in the spot where Katara had just been and there were no signs of the fight between him and his assailant. For a split second, Aang dared to believe that he had imagined the whole thing and that none of it had happened. But one look at his hands and the fabric of his clothes was enough to convince him that _something _had happened. The bloodstains were still there to prove it.

* * *

Suki had tried to convince herself that this was all just some crazy dream where everything would make sense in the end. Maybe it was just the smoke from the fire that was just getting to her head. Or maybe it was some trick of the light. There had to be some logical explanation for this. There was no way Sokka would just leave her in the middle of a fire to die while he walked off with some girl who looked a lot like Yue. She wasn't jealous of the princess; she loved Sokka, but if he ultimately chose someone else over her, there wasn't anything she could do about it. It'd hurt, but she'd find a way to cope and move on. What bothered her, though, was that Sokka seemed oblivious to her cries for help. The least he could do was help her out of the fire, right?

Sokka coughed, struggling to breathe as the thick smoke filled the air. He'd always trusted his instincts, but now, he regretted the moment he ever followed them. If it hadn't been for his stupid instincts, none of this would have happened. Staying low to the ground, he crawled on, ignoring the painful heat and his body screaming for rest. He was unbelievably tired and he wanted nothing more than to lean back against the wall and sleep, but he couldn't. Not with Suki being burned alive. The flames were bright and hot, growing in size and spreading farther, and choking on his own words, he called over and over again for Suki. He could hear her distant screams, her anguished cries pleading for help, but he could never seem to reach her. Just when he thought he had found her, she danced out of reach. Sokka knew he was losing time, but he couldn't do anything other than keep trying to get to Suki. But it seemed the more he tried to get to her, the harder it was. But he'd already lost enough people in his life to know that he certainly wasn't losing Suki, so as long he could, he would try to get to her and save her. He didn't know where the others were; at that particular moment, he didn't quite care. All he knew was that after losing his mother and Yue, he was going to save Suki or die trying. He crawled on when suddenly, the flames just vanished. The elegant carpet in the room, the tapestry on the wall, the furniture, everything was unmarred, as they had been before. Not a single thing had been charred by the fire. But lying in the center of the room, Suki certainly had been a victim of something because the silk fabric of the dress she had worn to the party had been stained with soot and she had a minor burn on her arm. Sokka sighed in relief, thankful that she was still alive. But their problem was still at hand. How were they going to get out of this house if they could barely make it through one room unscathed?

* * *

If Zuko were with him, Iroh knew he'd be ridiculed. Invariably, after they had all split up, he and Toph had found the kitchen. Naturally, they hadn't even had anything before going to the party so Iroh thought a nice cup of tea would do them good. He wasn't really expecting to find enough ingredients for tea in the rundown kitchen, but he found a few tea leaves and water and the rest was easy. He began heating the water with his firebending, whistling happily to himself, while Toph dozed off, her head resting on the rickety old table. As he was preparing the tea, he swore he heard the earthbender call his name but when he turned around, it wasn't Toph who stood before him. The teapot he had been holding fell to the ground and broke, the tea slipping into crevices in the floor. Iroh, for the first and perhaps only time, did not cry over spilled tea but merely stared at the figure in front of him, rubbing his eyes in disbelief.

"Lu Ten, my beloved son?" He whispered. "It must be a dream."

"You're not dreaming, Father," Lu Ten replied, coldly. "Failures like you don't dream. How can you call yourself Dragon of the West if you never conquered it? You're a failure, just like cousin Zuko."

Despite the insult, Iroh smiled. "So not a dream," he muttered, stooping down to pick up the broken china pieces. "Just a trick of the light then." He chuckled to himself and when he looked up, Lu Ten was gone.

* * *

Mai paused for a minute, leaning against the banister to take a quick break from searching for Zuko. Since they'd gotten separated, she'd given up trying to find something to free them from the house and concentrated on finding Zuko. There were few things that made her happy and walking through a supposedly cursed house in search of her boyfriend when she could have been at a party was not one of them. Of all the ways to spend a night, she thought, this was decidedly the worst way to do so. She was about to continue on when something caught her eye. Someone was resting against a statue down the corridor and Mai grimaced. Of all the rotten luck, she fumed.

"Let me guess," she said in her monotone voice, her amber eyes never wavering in their expression of boredom. "You're here because you want revenge?"

"No I don't."

"I've known you for a really long time Azula; you only come after people for revenge or to hurt them. It's what you do."

"Oh, I'm not here for any of that, really," the princess said, coolly. "There's a nice little party upstairs that I was invited to. They have the greatest orchestra and the best deserts."

Mai raised an eyebrow. "You really are insane, aren't you?"

"Me? Not at all. But Zuzu on the other hand…"

"How would you know about Zuko, Azula?"

"He's my brother; you think I wouldn't know him?"

"You spent your entire life trying to control him just like you did with me and Ty Lee. How would you know anything about him when all you did was chase him around the world and call him a failure?"

"Well, you must have believed he was a failure too," Azula replied, sauntering up to her. "Because I do remember you coming with me as we chased him around the world."

"Why do you think I came?" Mai replied, evenly. "Did you honestly think I cared about chasing the Avatar around?"

"Well, you're a fool if you think Zuko won't ever leave you again," Azula replied, examining her nails and smiling to herself. "He's never been the committed type; you and I both know that." Mai just rolled her eyes and Azula continued. "And you're a fool if you think you have a chance with him. As long as you were with me, you were in good graces, but now, what makes you different than all the other rich girls falling at his feet? Did you ever stop to think he's using you?"

"For what?" Mai wondered, twirling one of her daggers around.

"Anything he wants," Azula replied. "And when he's done with you, he'll toss you aside and move on to someone else like a..." The princess was cut off by one of Mai's daggers whirring through the air and she leaped aside just in time. "Idiot," she snarled, before the ground beneath Mai erupted in fire and she was shoved back against the banister. When the flames died down, Azula was nowhere in sight and inexpressive Mai, who seldom let her face betray what she really felt, let a few tears fall, before picking herself up and limping off to find Zuko.

* * *

Zuko tossed aside another useless figurine and continued rummaging through the closet for something. The small fire in his hand wasn't bright enough to illuminate the entire area and Zuko was quickly losing his patience. Shoving aside some empty boxes and cursing the moment he and Mai got separated, he searched on for something, not really caring what he found at this point. He was tired, hungry, and he felt like a cup of his uncle's calming jasmine tea was a necessity or he'd explode shortly. Running a hand through his hair, he sighed and shut the closet door and made his way out only to bump into a hooded figure.

"Sokka, this is no time for jokes," he yelled, irritated. If he hadn't been able to control his firebending, he was positive he would have spontaneously combusted by now. "What are you doing?"

Wordlessly, the figure pulled off the cloak and the black fabric fell away to reveal a tall woman, clad in the red of the Fire Nation. Her amber eyes were gazing coldly at Zuko but the young Firelord was too shocked to notice it. All he could do was stare at Firelady Ursa as if he had never seen something so shocking before.

"Aren't you a sight for sore eyes," she said sarcastically, taking in his appearance.

Zuko smiled, oblivious to her sarcasm. "I've been looking everywhere for you."

Ursa frowned. "Has it ever occurred to you that maybe I don't want to be found?"

"But…"

With movements too quick for Zuko to follow, Ursa hauled him with nothing short of superhuman strength into the air and flung him against the far wall.

"If you were smart enough, you'd stay away from me. You are no son of mine."

* * *

Katara knew she couldn't run forever, but she also knew stopping, even for a split second, was out of the question. A split second was all whatever or whoever was chasing her needed and she didn't like pondering what would happen if she was caught. She rounded a corner and took the nearest staircase down to the main floor and headed straight for the front door, not really hoping but just wishing that, miraculously, the front door would be open. Skidding to a halt in front of the massive door, she tried the handle and with a sinking feeling, realized it was still shut tight. Behind her, she could hear the footsteps of her pursuer and tugged frantically at the handle. The doors didn't budge and a sudden gust of air swept her off her feet and slammed her into the wall. She was suddenly very glad her dress was a little thick because it cushioned her fall. When she looked up, she could make out a figure standing just behind a patch of moonlight filtering in through the window.

"Aang?"

But when the figure stepped into the moonlight, Katara was shocked to discover it was a woman who stood there.

"Mom?"

"Were you expecting the airbender?" Kya asked, walking slowly towards her.

I wasn't expecting you, the waterbender wanted to say but all she could do was nod stupidly.

Kya sighed, kneeling beside her and pulling her into a hug and Katara gasped when she realized she could actually feel her mother hugging her and stroking her hair.

"I know you were expecting to find the Avatar, but honestly, Katara, you're a simple Water Tribe girl. You should know better than to think such things. Why would he come for you?"

Katara wiggled out of her mother's grasp and stared at her, her blue eyes narrowed and brimming with suspicion. "My mother would never say something like that. Who are you?"

"I am who you want me to be," she replied cryptically before vanishing into the darkness. Katara watched the figure leave and gingerly stood up to continue searching for the others when someone stopped her.

"Katara, what do you think you're doing?"

The waterbender turned around and found a certain airbender appraising her. She smiled in relief when she saw him.

"I was looking everywhere for you."

"So, you didn't find anything that might help us get out?"

"No. I was looking for you."

"You didn't even find a…"

"I already told you, I was…"

"Idiot," he muttered. "Next time we're trapped in a haunted house, why don't you actually prove yourself useful and find something that might help?"

Katara frowned. "What's wrong with you, Aang?"

"Nothing," he replied, evenly. "Let's go."

Katara kept her mouth shut and limped after him, ignoring the pain from her hurt ankle. She wanted to yell at Aang, but she knew it wouldn't solve anything.

"Can't you walk any faster?" Aang wondered. "At this rate, we'll never get to the other end of the mansion."

Katara wanted to scream and tear out her hair at that point. She didn't know if Aang was acting this way because they were all trapped in a mansion and everyone was on edge or because he was mad at her, but either way she wished he'd stop being so rude because she didn't like seeing him like that. He'd never really acted like that before.

"Are you mad at me?" she asked, suddenly. He gave a curt nod and Katara sighed. "Is it because…?"

"Don't talk."

If Katara wasn't already mad, she probably would have burst into tears. Oddly enough, it hurt having him be so cold towards her. He'd never really snapped at her or been rude to her. And more importantly, he'd never really been mad at her. She didn't like having him mad at her because a small part of her was scared of him and she'd never been scared of him before. So she followed him wordlessly after that, until he suddenly vanished. Too tired to do much of anything, she sank to the ground and just waited for something to happen. The next thing she knew, she was being shaken awake by Aang.

"Katara, is that really you?"

She flinched and shrank back, hoping he wasn't still mad at her and that he wouldn't snap at her.

"It's just me," he said gently, when he noticed how confused and scared she looked.

"I'm sorry I got lost again," she said, hastily. "But I was following you five minutes ago and then you just vanished and..."

"Five minutes ago?" he repeated. "But five minutes ago I was walking here all by myself; there's no way you could have been following me."

"I was," she insisted. "Don't you remember? We were trying to find the others and you said you were mad at me and…"

"I'm not mad at you."

"You're not?"

He shook his head. "No. Why would I be?"

"But I swear I was just with you."

"It's probably just this place."

"Maybe," the waterbender mused. Aang was about to say something when the doors at the far end of the corridor were suddenly thrown open and Sokka and Suki entered with the rest of their group entering after them.

"I found Katara and Aang," Toph said and Suki just rolled her eyes.

"Has this place gotten to you guys too?" Zuko asked. "Have you seen strange stuff?"

They nodded and Sokka grimaced. "It's like this place is making us live our worst nightmares."

Aang's eyes widened at the warrior's comment. "Sokka, you might be right."

"What? This is all just a dream?"

"Not all of it, but whatever we've seen. I know that what I saw was something I was definitely afraid might happen, even if it didn't happen the way I thought it would."

"I suppose I could say the same," Suki put in. Zuko and Mai nodded in agreement and Sokka sighed.

"Okay, so everyone saw something they were afraid of. Big deal."

"It is a big deal," an ethereal voice boomed and from the darkness, two pairs of beady, red eyes fixed the warrior and his friends with a cold stare. "Fear happens to keep me alive, boy."

"Who are you?"

"I'm not human, if that's what you're wondering. Did you think Tui and La were the only spirits that crossed into the mortal world, Avatar?" The beady red eyes fixed Aang with a glare. "You mortals provide such entertainment and your fear is quite amusing. It strengthens my abilities quite nicely. And the Avatar and the Firelord certainly have plenty of it." The spirit chuckled.

"So you were the one that trapped us in here," Zuko accused.

"Yes," the spirit answered. "And despite all your fears, you've all proven to be no fun. Most people succumb to them after the first trick or maybe the second."

"So all those things we saw weren't real?" Mai clarified.

"Just made to look like it," the spirit chortled and Aang sighed in relief.

"And you couldn't have done this without hurting us?" Zuko said, between clenched teeth.

The red eyes blinked calmly. "I have a tendency to forget that my abilities have a harsher affect on mortals. But you won't die of a broken leg, so you've no reason to worry. And since I'm letting you go, you really shouldn't be so melodramatic." The massive front door swung open and the red eyes stared back at the eight of them. "I do hope next time you all drop by you're more fun."

"Was no one else weirded out what just happened?" Sokka wondered as the red eyes vanished and as they all headed out into the early morning. The night had already slipped away and the party they had been set to attend had long since finished.

"Too tired to make sense of it," Suki replied.

"Not me. I feel great," Toph replied in an upbeat, cheery tone that was bound to annoy quite a few of them. "I had a nice nap."

"Only you would manage to," Mai muttered.

"Well, we know where we're not coming next year," Zuko said, hobbling after the others. "I'd really rather do without a broken leg."

"Or a twisted ankle," Katara muttered.

"You should probably stay off that," Aang said, scooping her up before she could protest. She knew she probably should have said something, but she was really tired and her foot was hurting a bit, so she just let herself fall asleep in his arms.

"So basically, you all just got beaten up by yourselves because some crazy spirit made you face your fears?" Toph laughed. "Man, I should have been awake to see this."

"Fear can be quite powerful," Iroh said, sagely. "Our fears can be our own worst enemies sometimes. It can make us see what we don't want to."

Aang looked down at Katara resting peacefully in his arms and repressed a shudder. He knew just how well fear could work sometimes. Fear may get in the way, he reasoned, but it was fear that had caused him to run away from the Southern Air Temple in the first place, and it was what indirectly led to him meeting Katara. He couldn't say he was sorry, because meeting Katara had been the best thing that had ever happened to him and he knew he wouldn't have traded it for anything else.

* * *

_I'm not too sure about how this turned out, but at least I had some fun writing it. Thanks for all the reviews I've gotten so far! And for those that sent me requests, I haven't forgotten about them. I promise I'll have them up ASAP. Thanks for being patient! ^.^_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	63. Melody

_I hope this oneshot is okay. I had an exam today (please don't ask me why I'm forced to take a test on the weekend or I just might reconsider my future) and my brain is fried right now. But, I finally got around to posting this. The idea and chapter title are Sylvanna's so all credit for this one goes to !_

_Disclaimer: I own nothing :(_

* * *

**LXIII. Melody**

**_"_**_Every soul is a melody which needs renewing."_

~ Stephanie Mallarme

Katara and Aang took the long way home, owing to the multitude of people milling within Ba Sing Se's Middle Ring. Normally, getting back to their house in the Upper Ring wasn't such a problem, but as the holiday season was approaching, most people were out trying to buy as much as they could before the advent of the New Year. Even though it was still two weeks away, they had learned early on that the citizens of Ba Sing Se, from the Earth King himself right down to the poorest beggar in the Lower Ring, took the holiday season very seriously and began preparing for it well advance. It was probably good business for the merchants, but Aang and Katara didn't think people needed to prepare two weeks in advance for something that didn't require a whole lot of work other than decorating and cooking. Still, they had to admit watching the preparations was entertaining. Every day, there was something new. Sometimes some students from the various schools would practice their music lessons for the New Year play hosted each year. They'd stand outside in the courtyard and rehearse with shoppers stopping for a few minutes to watch. Sometimes, the earthbenders would give small demonstrations of their performances or sometimes the merchants with pets would have their animals demonstrate a few tricks. If they were really lucky, they'd see the dancers and acrobats performing, but more often than not, they practiced away from the public eye since their performances were meant to be surprises. So, the two threaded their way through the crowd, taking the less frequented paths and avoiding the people until Katara stopped to look at a shop.

It was a small run down building but it seemed cheery nonetheless. The evening sunlight was filtering in through the open door bathing everything inside in a golden light. The lamps within hadn't been lit yet and the whole shop seemed to glow in the hazy pink light of sunset. The front counter was littered with sheets of music and a broken flute rested on top of the stack of papers. The shelves behind the counter were full of mouth pieces, reeds bows, and various other parts for all sorts of instruments.

"It's a music shop," Aang noted, gazing up at the sign where "Yu's Music Shop" was printed in neat, but faded, letters. "It looks abandoned."

"They must have every instrument possible," Katara said in awe, gazing at all the instruments stocked within. She looked around, and seeing no one about, ducked into the shop with Aang close behind. There were all sorts of instruments, from flutes to tsungi horns, to pianos and lyres. Several of the larger instruments were covered with dirty, torn sheets and a thin layer of dust seemed to blanket everything.

"I wonder why someone would abandon this place," the waterbender said, blowing some dust off of a flute and inspecting it. "Whoever made these instruments must have put in a lot of effort."

"Yeah. They're still in good condition even though it looks like no one has been here for a while," the airbender replied, playing a few keys on the piano. It was a little dusty, but other than it, it seemed to work perfectly. Absentmindedly, he began to let his hands roam over the keys and Katara smiled and took a seat beside him on the bench and watched him play. She had known he knew how to play the flute; he had played it long ago during their travels in the Earth Kingdom. She wouldn't have imagined, however, that he knew how to play the piano, but she wasn't too surprised. She was slowly beginning to realize that Aang had learned all sorts of things from his travels with the Air Nomads. Learning how to play instruments, she realized, was probably just one of many things the Air Nomads learned.

I wonder if I could play like that, she mused, watching the airbender as he continued to play. His hands were moving unimaginably fast over the keys and Katara was so busy trying to follow his movements, she barely heard the song. When she finally recognized the tune, she was somewhat taken aback. It had been a good many years since she had heard that melody and as Aang continued playing, Katara just sat silently beside him letting memories wash over her as the sweet melody filled the room. Little by little, the words of the song came back to her and it wasn't long before she was singing along in a soft voice to the lilting tune.

"I didn't know you knew that song," Katara said, softly, once Aang had finished. "My mother used to sing it for me and Sokka when we were little. I didn't think anyone else knew it."

"I didn't know it," Aang conceded. "But I've heard you humming it a lot, so I thought I'd give it a try."

"Why didn't you ever tell me you could play?" Katara wondered.

He smiled. "You never asked."

"Well, I didn't really think I'd need to…"

He chuckled. "It's okay. I'm not that good but Monk Gyatso was. He knew how to play almost every instrument."

"Every single one?" Katara echoed. "That's not possible, is it?"

"Well, not every single one," Aang admitted, laughing. "You'd have to be really talented or live to be really old, I suppose. But every instrument I saw him pick up, he knew how to play. And he always made it seem so easy. He'd hear a song once and just play it. I never figured out how he did it."

"But you did that just now," the waterbender pointed out. "You were able to play that song after listening to me hum it."

"Yeah, but you hum it a lot."

"I do?" Katara asked, surprised. Since her mother had died, she hadn't ever dared herself to sing the song out loud or even hum it. In the weeks after her mother's death, she remembered singing herself to sleep with that song, but never loud enough for anyone to hear. Even after she no longer needed to sing it to herself to fall asleep, she would. It was a way for her to hold on to her mother and to remember the words. Even after all these years, she remembered them, but she hadn't sung the song in ages. The thought of singing it subconsciously startled her. Sometimes, she got so lost in what she was doing that she barely noticed what she was singing or even _if_ she was singing. She wondered what Aang thought of it. She probably sounded awful.

"Why didn't you ever tell me you could sing?" the airbender asked and Katara just gaped at him. He thought she could sing? She wanted to laugh. She'd never had the voice to sing. Personally, she thought she was about as good at singing as Sokka was at drawing, but she enjoyed singing. She just didn't think anyone else would like the sound of her voice.

"You never asked," she replied, smiling. He laughed. "And I'm not that good, anyway."

"Who told you that? You have an amazing voice."

Katara rolled her eyes. "Hardly. I've never really taken lessons or anything. I don't know how to sing at all. And I barely know anything other than the songs my mother used to sing for me and Sokka."

"But you're really good at singing," Aang said, smiling at her.

"Thanks." She said softly, eyes downcast. For a while, Katara just sat and watched Aang move around the shop, looking at various sheets of music that were scattered about. She listened to him play some other instruments, but suddenly he was beside her again and playing the piano. The song he was playing was sweet and lively. It reminded her of some of the songs the orchestra had played at Zuko's coronation but this was slightly different. It was light and soft and it vaguely reminded her of Chong, the singing nomad, and the song he had sung. But this song was much sweeter, even if it didn't have words. But she had to admit, it was so sweet, it was somewhat of a sad song. The end left an aching feeling within her and she drew her knees up and sighed. The last bit reminded her of the song some of the Water Tribe members had played when news first broke out that Kya had passed away.

"Is something wrong?" Aang asked, realizing Katara looked a little glum all of a sudden.

The waterbender shook her head. "Nothing's wrong. The song just brings back old memories, that's all. It's a beautiful song."

Aang smiled. "Yeah. Monk Gyatso taught it to me. It's supposed to be a love song."

"It's very pretty," Katara replied, a faint blush gracing her cheeks. "But the end is kind of sad for a love song, don't you think?"

"Maybe."

For a minute, they were both silent. Suddenly, Aang was begging her to sing the song her mother had taught her again.

Katara bit her lip. "I don't know," she said. "I've never really sang it out loud before until now."

"And you were great," Aang said. "Please, just once. I'll even play if you sing."

"Oh, alright," she laughed, giving in. "Just once." And so, Aang played while Katara sang. She didn't think she was any good, but she sang on anyway. Halfway through the song, someone barged in and both Katara and Aang immediately stopped what they were doing to gaze at a smiling, middle aged man. He was rather short, in his mid-fifties and, dressed in simple robes, he looked to be a simple merchant. His green eyes were twinkling brightly and he was smiling the biggest smile either of them had ever seen.

"Avatar Aang, Master Katara," he exclaimed, bowing so low he almost fell over. "It is an honor to have you in my shop."

"This is your shop?" The waterbender wondered. The merchant nodded. "Oh, we're sorry for just barging in but it looked abandoned so we…"

"No need to apologize," the merchant, presumably Mr. Yu, said. "That was some lovely singing you were doing just now."

Katara blushed. "It wasn't really singing."

"You two should consider performing for the festival," the merchant said, smiling kindly at them. "As a matter of fact, I can arrange it. You can use my instruments. It'd be my pleasure to let you use them, not to mention it would be good for business." Before either Aang or Katara could protest, he was out the door and running to get the nearest official he could.

"What just happened?" Aang wondered, staring at the spot where Mr. Yu had just been standing a second ago.

"I think we just got signed up to perform in the New Year's festival," Katara replied. Suddenly, she felt very nervous. She'd never really performed anything in her whole life and now she'd have to perform something in front of hundreds, if not thousands, of people. Just the mere thought of it made her mouth grow dry and her stomach churn. She just couldn't perform anything. She was sure she'd die from embarrassment or something.

"Aang, I can't do this," she said, hastily.

"You don't even know what we're doing," he protested.

"But I can't perform something in front of thousands of people. I get nervous."

"Thousands of people? You think that many people will show up?" the airbender wondered. Katara shrugged and Aang sighed. "That's an awful lot of people."

"You're nervous too?"

"Hey, I'm still human," he teased. "I've gotten nervous lots of times before."

"But you never show it," the waterbender replied. "I'm sure if I performed, it'd show."

"We'll just have to see."

When Mr. Yu came back, he was grinning and his face was flushed. Breathlessly, he explained that the two had been chosen to perform with the dancers and acrobats. They were to do a musical number with the dancers and acrobats performing in time to their music. Privately, Aang wasn't looking forward to it and from the nervous look on Katara's face, she wasn't either but there was no way to back out of it now that they'd already been allotted a spot in the performance.

"So, what exactly are we supposed to perform?" Aang wondered.

"Anything you want," Mr. Yu answered, smiling broadly.

"I'll perform," Katara piped up. "But please don't make me sing."

"I don't think you'll have to," Aang said, wrapping an arm around her.

"Oh, you're free to do whatever you like," Mr. Yu laughed. "Feel free to be creative."

There wasn't much time for them to practice, but Katara wanted to learn how to play the song her mother used to sing, so day after day, she and Aang returned the music shop to practice it. Aang taught her how to play it on the piano and for a while Katara was convinced she would never get the hang of it. But Aang pointed out that learning how to play an instrument was far easier than mastering waterbending and that if she could master waterbending, she could definitely learn how to play a rather simple song on the piano. They spent hours practicing and sometimes the dancers and acrobats came to listen and to plan their dances around them. A couple of times, Sokka, Suki, Toph, and Iroh came to watch them play. Sokka wasn't surprised that Katara had chosen that song, but he was surprised, and mildly upset, that she refused to sing it for him.

"How'd you get her to sing it for you?" he asked Aang. "I've tried to get her to sing it for me, just to hear what it sounds like, but she never has."

Aang shrugged. "I didn't really. She just hums it a lot, so I tried playing it on the piano and she sang it. But she hasn't sung it since."

Sokka gave a sad smile. He knew Katara would sing it when she was ready but until then, he was content just listening to the instrumental rendition of it. He had to admit, it sounded really good with Katara playing piano and Aang playing the flute. Iroh apparently liked it so much, he left his staff in charge of the Jasmine Dragon, joined their act, and came to play his tsungi horn with the two. It wasn't long before all the posters for the festival had little paragraphs telling about the stunning performance featuring Ba Sing Se's legendary dance and acrobat troupe performing with the Dragon of the West, the Avatar, and Master Katara. Seeing all the posters made Katara feel a little better about performing and she worked harder to make sure her piece was perfect, especially the little solo part Iroh thought she should play. But when the day of the festival arrived and Katara saw all the people milling about waiting for the performances to begin, she became nervous all over again. Even with an accomplished person such as Iroh with them, she didn't feel any better. She was so worried she would have barely seen any of the other performances if Aang hadn't distracted her and made her watch them. When it was their turn to perform, they took the stage and the crowd went wild.

"Are you nervous?" Aang whispered as Iroh finished the last of his tea before taking up his tsungi horn.

"Very," she replied.

"Me too," he admitted. "But with Iroh playing with us, there's no way the people are going to hate us."

"But what if I mess up?" she demanded.

"You won't," he assured her. "And if you do, so what? I've messed up lots of times before, during the war, so messing up at a festival can't be worse than that."

Katara smiled.

Much to her relief, their performance went off flawlessly. The dancers and acrobats were completely in sync with their music and Katara's little solo went well. She was so afraid she'd mess up, but in reality, once her solo came, she barely noticed the crowd. She remembered thinking about the lyrics of the song and her fingers seemed to move seamlessly over the keys, churning out the beautiful melody (without a single mistake) for everyone to hear.

"That was amazing," Suki said, once they their number had ended. "You three should consider performing more often."

"Perhaps," Iroh said. "But, if I became a musician, who would run my tea shop?"

"And I'm not too sure I'd want to do that again," Aang admitted. "It was fun, but sometimes just playing without hundreds of people watching you is a lot more fun."

"And it's a lot easier to learn how to play" Katara laughed. "Especially when there's no time limit."

"Now that you've performed that song in front of lots of people, will you sing it to me?" Sokka wondered. "You don't have to sing me to sleep or anything."

Katara made a face. "I wouldn't sing you to sleep even if you asked," she laughed.

"I just want to remember it," her brother said, defensively. "A guy can like music too, you know?"

"I know," Katara replied.

"So, will you sing it for me?"

"Maybe one day," she promised.

"One day," Sokka whined. "How is that fair? You sang it for Aang, but you won't sing it for me?"

She nodded, smiling.

"But I'm your brother," he protested. "Come on."

Katara just laughed. "I'll do it eventually," she promised. Maybe someday she'd get over her fear of sounding bad and just sing for everyone to hear, regardless of what she thought of her voice. But for now, she was content to keep the melody just to herself. Perhaps in the future, she'd sing it to her children, but until then, she'd practice it and perfect it, so when everyone finally did hear it, it would be the same beautiful, soothing melody her mother had sung to her as a child.

* * *

_Not really sure if the Avatar world has some of those instruments such as pianos and lyres, but I took the liberty of throwing them in there anyway. Thanks for reading and thanks for all the reviews I've gotten so far. You're all terrific! ^^_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	64. New Beginnings

_I don't really have an explanation for this. I was trying to work on some of the requests I got, when this idea just started to form, so I wrote it. It's set between ATLA and TLOK so there are probably lots of discrepancies. Still, I hope it doesn't detract from the story. Enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar or Legend of Korra :(_

* * *

**LXIV. New Beginnings**

_A new beginning_

_A new chapter of my life_

~ Delta Goodrem, Out of the Blue

The early morning mists were just evaporating when she stepped out. When her bare feet made contact with the ground for the first time in months, something like a shudder of pleasure ran through her. The soil felt cool between her toes and she let out a sigh of pleasure. Her shoes had long since vanished. She no longer remembered what had happened to them. She'd been a little apprehensive about walking the path barefoot, but she had to admit she enjoyed the feeling of the soft grass and the cool soil beneath her skin. When the sharp gravel on the path cut through her skin, she laughed, lifting up her feet to examine the cuts, dripping crimson. She held it out for her escorts to see, not caring that they thought she was slightly crazy. After such a long time, she was free and she intended to make the most of it. For so long, she had just watched. It had been so long since her feet had been allowed to feel the softness of the grass, to feel the sharp, gravelly path or the moist soil. It had been too long since the wind had played with her hair or the sunlight had fallen in soft, golden beams upon her and she reveled in the sensation, taking everything in as if she had been exposed to the world for the first time.

Her escorts left her shortly. They gave her some money (very little, actually) and a set of new, more suitable clothes and bidding her farewell, took the same path they had come on, disappearing from view rather quickly. After she had discarded her old, worn uniform and changed into the newer, more comfortable material, she set off in search some food. Admittedly, it wasn't easy because there was so much variety to choose from. After being away from others for so long and after having nothing but porridge and the occasional servings of fruits, her stomach was screaming for something delicious. But with so much to choose from, she was positive she'd never find something because she could never make up her mind. When she did settle for something, she paid for it and walked on, thankful that no one had recognized her yet.

Her wanderings brought her to the wealthier section of the city, to places she had frequented as a child. Taking her time to savor the taste of her food, she ate and walked slowly, reliving memories, both good and bad. Her little walk, however, ended abruptly when she noticed five little children, three girls and two boys, playing in a grassy field. They were initiating some sort of mock battle and she merely finished the remnants of her meal and watched them play. The older of the two boys, stood atop a rock, brandishing a stick as his sword and was waving it about furiously as the other four jumped around him. She couldn't catch most of what they were saying, but it looked as if they were recreating a famous battle from some old legend. She smiled a little, surprised at herself and continued to watch them play. One of the girls in particular, however, caught her attention. There was something familiar about her amber eyes and her raven black hair. She looked vaguely familiar, but somehow it wasn't possible that she knew that little girl. The other two also seemed hauntingly familiar. When they looked at her and smiled and waved, she noticed their eyes were a deep, clear blue and she wondered. She didn't see much of the two boys, until the smaller one was standing right in front of her. She took a step back in surprise.

"Do you want to play with us?" he asked, his gray eyes sparkling as he looked up at her. He gave her a sweet smile and she bit her lip. She hadn't thought about what would happen if the children spotted her watching them.

"No, you probably don't want me to play with you," she returned. "Go back and play with your friends."

The little boy cocked his head to one side and gazed up at her, quizzically. "You look lonely," he ventured to say at last.

"Maybe I am."

"Do you want to be our friend?" he asked.

She shook her head. "Go back to playing with your friends, little boy. I have work to do. I need to find a place to stay."

"We have a place to stay," one of the girls with blue eyes said. "We can show you. We're going home now, anyway. It's almost lunchtime."

"I'd rather not," the young woman replied, but the little boy with gray eyes had already taken hold her hand and started walking. The raven haired girl took her other hand and they talked a lot as they walked home. She learned that the blue eyed girls and the grey eyed boys were related, that the raven haired girl was an only child, that all five of them were best friends, had the best parents, and lived in one of the coolest houses. She was a little eager to see the house because the prospect of being given a proper meal and a soft bed were inviting, but she was surprised to discover that the house was one of the few larger ones located behind the palace. It wasn't much of a walk to the outer gate of the palace and she wondered who on earth had bought this house.

"Mom," one of the blue eyed girls called out, poking her head into the house. When no one answered, she led everyone in and looked for her mother. "Mom, we're back and we brought a friend. Come see."

"Coming," her mother called from some unknown room.

"Hurry up, Mom. There's someone you have to meet."

"Kya, did you go to the market again instead of going to play? You know your aunt and uncle don't want you to take your cousin there."

"No," Kya replied. "We were playing in the field and we met someone. Well, actually, Tenzin did and we brought her home. Come and meet her."

Kya's mother sighed. "Kya, you should know better than to bring people home. This place is a mess," her mother said, stepping out of the kitchen. "I'm really sorry they brought you… Azula?"

Azula just stared in shock at young woman before her. "You're that waterbender, aren't you?"

She nodded. "I have a name but…"

"What are you doing here?" Azula demanded.

"I live here. What about you?" Katara wondered.

Azula realized that the children were still holding her hands and quickly pulled herself free of their grip. "They brought me here."

"She doesn't have a place to stay," Kya said. "And she's hungry."

"I'd imagine," Katara muttered.

"Do you know her?" Tenzin asked.

Azula gave a hard laugh and Katara smiled, wryly. "Sort of. Why don't you kids go play until everyone else comes back, then you can have lunch."

The children nodded and rushed off to the backyard.

"Are they all yours?" Azula wondered.

"What?" Katara asked, blankly.

"The children," the firebender replied, gesturing to the five playing outside and feeling a little awkward. She wasn't used to being so nice or social. "Are they all yours?"

Katara just blinked at her.

"What?" Azula demanded. "Why do you keep staring at me like that?"

The waterbender averted her gaze. "Sorry. I'm just surprised you haven't tried attack me or any of them since you found out who we are."

"Spending a decade in prison changes a person. You never answered my question. Are all those children yours?"

Katara blushed. "No, of course not. Only those three," she said, pointing to Kya, Bumi, and Tenzin.

"And the other two?"

"One is my niece, Ayako."

"The blue eyed one, right?"

Katara nodded. "Sokka and Suki's daughter."

So that was why those blue eyes looked so familiar, Azula mused. They were just like Katara and Sokka's. "And the other girl?" she wondered.

"Is your niece."

Azula looked flabbergasted. "What?" she choked out.

"She's your niece." Katara repeated, calmly.

"I don't… I can't," she stammered. "When did Zuko get married? _How _did he get married? Who did he…?"

"Who do you think?" Katara asked, rolling her eyes.

Azula laughed softly to herself. "So he and Mai…?"

Katara nodded. "Her name's Ursa."

"Ursa," she repeated. "I'm not too surprised that's her name. Does my father know about this?"

Katara just shrugged and disappeared, reappearing moments later with a bowl of soup which she handed to Azula. "You look like you could use a good meal."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Azula snapped.

"Nothing," the waterbender amended. "You just look…"

"Deranged?" the former princess supplied, smiling grimly.

"I was going to say tired."

"I've been locked away for so long I probably look like a mess. Why are you being so nice to me anyway? It's not like you have to."

"No, I don't, but you must have changed because you haven't made one rude comment yet, attacked the kids, or attacked me."

"That's because I was shut away from the world for almost ten years, rotting in that miserable prison cell. Everyone thought I was crazy. Even you did."

"What? That's not true. I never…"

"You think I didn't see that look you gave me, the day you defeated me? You thought I was insane."

"I thought it was such a shame you were snapping and going insane. I never thought you had reached insanity yet" she corrected.

"Well, everything was starting to crumble," Azula muttered. "I couldn't help it."

"That's not true. You always could. You never had to do what you did."

"I'd have wasted away if I hadn't," the former princess countered.

"No one ever forced you to do anything, Azula. You never had to come after us or doing any of the things you did."

Azula's eyes narrowed. "Yes I did. My father would have called me a failure and banished me like he banished Zuko. I had no choice. It was the only way to get him to…"

"What?"

"Never mind," Azula muttered.

"You know, she asks about you a lot."

"Who?"

"Ursa," Katara replied. "Zuko and Mai tell her a lot of stories from the past, but I don't think they tell her about you. But she asks a lot, all the same."

"And you know this for a fact?"

Katara nodded. "She's asked me and Aang too."

"The Avatar?" Azula said. "You still keep in touch with him?"

"Yeah, of course I do. We live here."

"_We? _Wait, you actually married the Avatar?" Azula asked incredulously, piecing together the pieces of the puzzle.

Katara laughed. "What? You didn't think a filthy peasant like me could?"

"Well, I… I'd heard rumors about you two but I assumed he'd have found someone else to marry when he was ready. So, what do you tell Ursa when she asks?"

Katara shrugged. "Excuses, what else? Is there any way to tell her that her aunt tried to kill her parents or her friends' parents?"

"And?"

"She thinks you don't love her."

"I don't even know her," Azula sighed.

"Do you want to?"

Azula looked thoughtful for a moment. "Yes," she said, softly. "But I can't."

"Why not?"

"I'm not a people person, in case you haven't noticed. I spent so much time chasing you guys around, but I don't even know you're name."

"Katara," the waterbender replied. "But that's still no excuse not to get to know your niece."

"What makes you so sure Zuko or Mai would even let me near her?" the firebender demanded. "They've probably told her I'm a monster."

"They've told her you're just confused, but they've always believed you'd change."

"Really?"

"Really, though you have Aang to thank for that. The rest of us always thought you'd stay in prison and never change, but he kept telling us you would."

"Well, he must have been right about something because I was released."

Katara nodded. "If it wasn't for him, I might have attacked you when I saw you with the kids."

"But you didn't" Azula pointed out.

"Because you haven't given me a reason to," Katara responded.

"So, you've forgiven me?"

"Sort of," Katara admitted. "I'm still mad you nearly killed Aang and the rest of us, but I've learned not to hold grudges and let go of my anger."

"Do you think the others will forgive me too when they find out I'm here?"

"They might. If I can forgive you, I'm sure they can."

"I don't know."

"They'll be here soon; Zuko and Mai have to come and get Ursa anyway and I share the house with my brother and his family. So, why don't you wait and see?"

When the others returned, they were shocked to see the Fire Nation princess sitting at the table with the five children in an animated discussion which ended abruptly as soon as they walked in. Only Toph and Aang got over their initial shock and acted like Azula had been with them the entire time. Zuko didn't know how they could act as if his sister hadn't done anything wrong at all. Even when Toph told him she could sense the change through Azula's vibrations, he wasn't at ease. But seeing Ursa look so happy at having her aunt with her made him reconsider his earlier idea of keeping Azula away from his daughter. Ursa was talking and laughing with Azula as if she had been with her aunt her whole life and oddly enough, Azula looked content. Zuko thought he saw a shadow of who his sister had been before she had gotten out of hand and smiled. Maybe, he mused, this wasn't such a bad idea after all.

Azula hadn't expected to stay for very long, but she spent nearly a week staying with Zuko and Mai, and spending as much time as she could with her niece. It was strange, she reflected, how different everything had suddenly become. Years ago, if someone had forced her into the same room with Zuko, a bending battle would have promptly ensued, but now, they were both acting more like siblings than like mortal enemies. Everyone found Azula's transformation surprising, even Azula herself did, but they certainly weren't complaining. When Iroh came to visit and saw her, he was nearly in tears. He told her over and over again how thankful he was that he had been alive when she had changed, because quite frankly, he assumed that _if_ she changed at all, it would be well after his time. Azula, for her part, found all the attention and friendship slightly strange and awkward, but she enjoyed every minute of it.

The children were delighted to have her around as well. Whenever she and Azula went to the market, Ursa would proudly show her off and tell people of her aunt's radical transformation. It must have worked, because suddenly people were talking to her as if she had never conspired with Ozai to take over the world, as if she was a normal person. Azula liked the feeling but found it strange all the same. She'd used fear to control everyone before, but now she realized that it wasn't probably wasn't the best technique she used. Ursa and the other children loved watching her firebend (because of her blue fire) as well, and they often tried to copy her moves. She was surprised to discover that Katara and Aang's children were benders but she knew she should have expected it. What she hadn't expected, however, was how attached she'd get to the children. When there was nothing for her to do, as was the case most of the time, she found herself with the children just watching them play. Sometimes, they made her join in on their games, but more often than not she just watched and enjoyed herself. A tiny part of her was scared at how often she had been surprising herself lately and a tiny part of her was mad. She wished she'd had her little transformation like Zuko had, long ago because she felt like she had missed out on so much.

One summer evening, when everyone had gathered together for dinner at the palace, Azula wandered off into the courtyard and sat by the duck pond, thinking. Her little stay had been overextended to the point where Zuko and Mai had insisted she stay with them. She thought it hilarious since years ago, they'd have run away from her, but now they were inviting her to stay with them. She wondered what her mother would think of her now. Or her father. She couldn't imagine that Ozai would be too happy, but she found she didn't care.

"Azula, what are you doing out here in the dark?"

She turned around to find Katara standing behind her.

"Thinking," she said. "I've still got a brain."

"About what?" Katara demanded, taking a seat beside her.

"Nothing much," Azula admitted. "But this could have so easily been me."

"Huh?"

"If I had changed like Zuko had sooner, I could have been like you and Mai."

"You mean…"

"I could have had a family, had kids. But I'll probably die an unwanted woman without a family."

"What about Zuko? He's family."

"I meant without a family of my own."

"You don't know that," Katara said.

"Just because I've managed to make Zuko, Mai, and the rest of you like me, doesn't mean everyone else will." Azula sighed. "They'll probably just remember who I used to be."

"You never know," was all Katara said.

A gentle breeze blew and Azula pushed some of her hair out of her face and shrugged. "I guess not. But, it's funny, now that I think about it. I'd hear people come into the prison to visit other prisoners and they'd always go on and on about how much they missed each other and I remember thinking no one would ever come for me and that no one would ever take me in if I was ever released. But that didn't come true because Zuko and Mai actually want me to stay."

"Maybe because he cares," Katara offered. "You are his sister after all."

"No one else cared before, not even my mother."

"From what I've heard from Zuko, I think she did," Katara countered.

"Maybe," Azula acquiesced. "But I thought she didn't and I spent so much time trying to gain my father's love and approval, because that's all I ever really wanted. But it was all for nothing. I bet my father doesn't really love me. He probably thinks I'm a failure too, since we lost the war. But I don't care."

"You don't?" Katara asked, surprised.

Azula shook her head. "You'll never know just how much a decade of solitary confinement can change someone. I used to sit in my cell and think that maybe I'd just die in there or that I'd really go insane because no one came to see me. No one really cared. And when I was discharged, I thought I'd end up as beggar or something because I had nowhere to go. But when the kids brought me here, it was the strangest thing ever. You all just took me in. And Zuko's been nicer to me in these past few weeks than he's ever been before."

"Maybe because you've been nice to me too," Zuko said, joining them. Katara just smiled and left brother and sister to talk. "It's strange not having you trying to attack me or fighting you, but I'm not complaining."

"Me neither," Azula admitted. "Ten years ago, if someone had told me we'd be acting more like family and less like sworn enemies, I might have killed them on the spot. But now I'm just thankful for what I have. It could have been a lot worse. I could have gone insane, lost my bending, ended up dead, or just lived by myself in some far-off town."

"Yeah," Zuko said. "You could have, but you didn't. You ended up with us and, I can't believe I'm saying this, but it's kind of nice having you back. It was like when we were younger, before you turned all crazy and I was banished."

Azula nodded. "Everything is so different now, though. I have to admit, I like it better this way."

"Then why didn't you change sooner?" Zuko asked.

Azula shrugged. "I don't know. I guess all I wanted was to be loved and I got the crazy idea that our mother didn't love me. I always thought since she didn't, I'd have to work hard to try and make sure our father did. I figured I'd have to learn to be just like him if I had any chance of getting what I wanted and so I did. And I tried doing what he did, controlling people and making them fear me, to get what I wanted. I tried capturing you or the Avatar to make him feel proud of me. But I guess in the end, even that wasn't good enough because he probably doesn't care about either of us now."

"Uncle Iroh does," Zuko pointed out. "And things are different now. We're with better people than our father, believe me. So this is a pretty good ending if you ask me."

Azula just laughed and shook her head. "No," she said smiling. "It's a new beginning."

"You sound like Katara or Aang," the young Firelord noted.

"Proof that I've already been with you guys for too long," Azula replied. "But like you said, things are different now. I've got a whole new life ahead of me and I intend to make the most of it."

* * *

_This was interesting to write, but I think the chances of something like this actually happening in between ATLA and TLOK are kind of slim. But, I've always found Azula to be an interesting character. I feel like her future was left very ambiguous. While it's most likely true that she wound up in prison or something, I can't see her being insane (or whatever she was) forever. After some time, I think she'd change, but then again, I'm just an ATLA fangirl who writes fanfiction for her amusement. What do I know? :D Anyway, thanks for all the reviews I've gotten so far. You're all amazing! :)_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	65. A Bloodbender's Salvation

_Gah, I've been a bad author. I've been buried in work lately so it took me forever and a day to finish this and finally get around to posting it. All credit for this one goes to crisy93. Enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own ATLA._

* * *

**LXV. A Bloodbender's Salvation**

_I feel it coming over me_

_I'm still a slave to these dreams_

_Is this the end of everything_

_Or just a new way to bleed_

~ Evanescence, New Way to Bleed

A small Water Tribe boat with blue sails was gliding through the sea, aided by the gentle winds as it pushed forward towards the southern region of the Earth Kingdom. On board, the four members who comprised the crew and passengers were lounging on the upper deck, drinking in the scenery as the ship floated past a number of islands. Some were inhabited and the people waved as they passed, but others looked as if they had been uninhabited for centuries. There were all sorts of strange sights and sounds to take in but unfortunately, the little ship was speeding on headed straight for Kyoshi Island in an attempt to reach there before darkness fell. After picking up certain items at Kyoshi, the boat was scheduled to dock in the Fire Nation a week later but privately, Suki didn't think that would happen. She'd been spending time with Sokka at the Southern Water Tribe when General Iroh had invited them to attend the meeting of the Order of the White Lotus that he was hosting at the Jasmine Dragon. Everyone was looking forward to it because for the first time in months it was just a friendly gathering and had nothing to do with politics. Sokka was excited to see Master Piandao again and Aang was eager to see King Bumi but at the rate the wind and currents were going, Suki thought they'd never make it in time. There really wasn't any need to stop at Kyoshi but Iroh was fond of the tea leaves the islanders grew and Suki thought they should at least get him something instead of going empty-handed. Katara had agreed and thus, the four of them found themselves sailing to Kyoshi on a boat Hakoda had given them. Suki was glad Katara and Aang were with them because whenever the wind died, airbending came in handy. And when the currents seemed to slow, waterbending was quite useful. It was tiring to continually use bending to propel the ship forward, but luckily they never had to do it for more than five to ten minutes at a stretch.

"I don't know about you guys, but I can't wait to go back to the Fire Nation," Sokka said. "I've gotten so used to the warm weather I can't stand the cold of the South Pole sometimes."

Katara laughed. "Aren't you also the one who said you couldn't stand the heat of the Fire Nation?"

Sokka made a face. "I said that once; that doesn't count because there was a drought and it was really hot."

Suki grinned. "He'll still say the same thing when we get there, won't he?"

"Probably," Katara replied, giggling with her. Sokka just frowned and muttered something incoherent under his breath.

They reached Kyoshi sooner than expected and spent a day there, mostly for Suki to make arrangements for the newest Kyoshi warriors and to tell Oyaji that she'd be gone for some time. Ty Lee and the other Kyoshi warriors helped her gather as many tea leaves as they could and had them packed for Iroh and the other members of the Order. Katara and Aang spent a large portion of the day running away from girls who seemed hell bent on forcing the young Avatar to stay while Sokka was lecturing on the benefits of science. The little boys and the young men he was talking to looked enthralled and within minutes, he was helping them make all sorts of contraptions.

"I could have stayed there forever," Sokka sighed, once they were all back on the ship and sailing away. "Those guys are brighter than some of the warriors I trained back home."

"I think it's because your so called warriors were mostly five year olds who didn't care about anything other than fighting Fire Nation soldiers," Katara said, rolling her eyes.

"Speaking of the Fire Nation," Suki said. "I heard something strange." All eyes turned towards her. "When I went to tell Oyaji I was travelling with you guys, there was merchant who had come to see him. He was from the Fire Nation, visiting his cousin on Kyoshi. When I mentioned Katara's name, he got nervous all of a sudden and said when you guys had last come to his village, you'd spent a lot of time with a creepy old lady and learned some forbidden art or something like that. Is it true?"

Katara suddenly went rigid and Suki noticed something unspoken pass between the other three.

"Are you talking about her ability to heal?" Aang asked, breaking the silence.

"I knew she could do that," Suki chuckled. "But this merchant was talking about something else. He kept saying it was dangerous and that I shouldn't travel with you guys especially since tonight is a full moon or I might regret it. He was going on and on; I could barely understand him. But I did tell him there was no danger whatsoever and that I was going to come regardless of what he said."

"What else did he say?" Sokka wondered.

Suki shrugged. "It sounds like mostly gossip but he was really worked up about whatever it is Katara supposedly learned. He kept rambling and saying everyone on Kyoshi was probably doomed. He warned us to leave at the first sign of strange disappearances and to stay indoors during the full moon and to lock all our doors and stuff like that."

"I don't believe it," Sokka cried. "He makes it sound like Katara's turning into some kind of monster every full moon or…" He stopped when he noticed his sister was staring abjectly at the floor. "Sorry, I didn't mean it like that."

But Katara had just given him a small smile before getting up and disappearing to her room.

"What's going on?" Suki asked, completely baffled, as Aang disappeared after Katara. Sokka sighed. "Did I say something wrong?"

"Not really," Sokka said. "It's complicated. That merchant you met wasn't wrong but he wasn't right either."

"You mean Katara actually learned some forbidden art or something?" Suki clarified.

"Sort of," Sokka said. "You should really talk to her about because she'd kill me if I told you the truth. But it's been hard for her. It's not exactly a forbidden art, but it's not really a nice one to use either. After she learned, we were all really worried about her, even Toph. I think she was really scared of turning into that old lady the merchant mentioned. She was from our tribe but after the Fire Nation captured her, she turned bad, I guess. Sometimes, I think Katara is still afraid of turning into her."

"I'm sorry," Suki apologized. "I thought it was just a bunch of gossip; that's why I brought it up. It sounded so farfetched."

"Sort of," Sokka agreed. "But if you want to know the truth, you'd better ask Katara for yourself."

"Maybe I will," Suki mused.

* * *

Aang found Katara in her room, just staring blankly out the small window at the horizon, where the night sky and the setting sun met the sea. She looked like she wasn't doing anything, but Aang knew better. She was probably mulling over what Sokka and Suki had said.

"Hey," he said, coming to sit beside her. "Are you okay?"

She sighed. "I don't know. If that merchant from Hama's village remembered me and knew I could bloodbend, how many other people do you think remember?"

"I think he must have found out from Hama herself. No one else would know."

"You're wrong," She said, softly, drawing up her knees and wrapping her arms around them. "Toph came with all the villagers. They were there when Hama congratulated me on learning how to bloodbend. If that merchant remembers, the others probably do too."

"You don't know that," Aang objected.

"Aang, when he goes back to the Fire Nation, he'll probably tell the others in the village. People are going to know."

"So what?"

"They'll think I'm dangerous like that merchant."

"Katara, no one's going to think you're dangerous."

"You can't guarantee that," she snapped. "You can't help. I'm not a problem you can fix."

"No," he agreed. "I can't guarantee that and you don't need fixing because you're not a problem."

"Not a problem? People don't care who I am. They care about what I can do to help. If they find out I'm a bloodbender, they won't let me help" she argued. "How can you say that I'm not a problem? Do you know what's it's like to be looked at just because you're different?"

Aang just laughed. "Of course I do," he said. "That's what my entire life has been like, or at least my life since you released me from the iceberg. And being different isn't bad."

"It is when it gets in the way of helping people. If the whole world knew what I could do, no one will want me around, except for maybe people who could use bloodbending for their personal gain."

"I'd still want you around."

"You'd probably be the only one," she muttered. "Everyone else will probably just think I'm a monster, like Sokka said."

"You know that's not true."

"Yes it is," Katara replied. "Power corrupts."

Aang looked thoughtful for a minute. "I guess I'm pretty corrupted too, then."

"Aang, I didn't mean…" She began, apologetically, but Aang just laughed.

"I know," he replied, smiling good-naturedly. "And even if no one else wants you, you still have your family and friends."

Katara gave a small smile and was about to thank him when suddenly the ship stopped moving. "I wonder what's wrong," she muttered following Aang back to the upper deck. "Sokka probably realized he forgot something on Kyoshi."

"We have a small problem," Sokka said, as Aang and Katara joined him and Suki.

"How small?" Aang asked. Before Sokka could answer, the waters suddenly parted and a massive form rose above the ship. Shielding themselves from all the water raining down upon them, the four patiently waited until they could get a better look at what had stopped the ship. When they did, Katara just fixed her brother with a less than amused stare.

"You call that small?" she demanded, pointing to the Unagi that towered above them. Sokka just grinned sheepishly.

"What's it doing here?" Aang asked. "I thought we left the bay of Kyoshi a while ago."

"Actually, the bay is pretty big," Suki countered. "And even otherwise, the Unagi has a huge range. Some people say they've seen it as far north as Ba Sing Se, but I doubt that."

"Maybe we should just continue sailing," Sokka suggested. "It might leave us alone." So he and Suki set to work readjusting the sails while Aang used airbending to gently propel them forward. When they thought the Unagi would leave them alone, Sokka immediately returned to his conversation with Suki. He didn't spend too much time talking with Suki because within five minutes of them setting sail, they were stopped. They were hardly out of the bay of Kyoshi when they were stopped again by the Unagi resurfacing near their boat. Sokka let out a yelp and hurried off to his room, returning seconds later with his boomerang just in case, he explained, the giant sea monster decided to attack them. The Unagi fixed them with a hungry look and Sokka really hoped they wouldn't get attacked because the Unagi clearly had the upper hand as it blended in so well with the dark sky. If it hadn't been so tall, it would have been almost impossible to fight.

Contrary to Sokka's wishes, the Unagi did attack. With a feral growl it dived straight for them, rocking the ship which was like a little toy compared to the giant sea monster. Katara and Aang immediately went below deck to make sure the ship hadn't sprung any leaks and to assess any damage done while the Suki and Sokka simply used anything they could to keep the Unagi at bay. Suki realized that in spite of living her whole life on Kyoshi, she really didn't know much about the Unagi as she thought she did. She knew that it ate almost anything it was offered but she certainly wasn't about to offer herself up as bait.

"Any ideas?" Sokka asked, hopefully, brandishing his sword again as the Unagi made another attempt to get them.

Suki shook her head and turned to Aang and Katara who had returned to the upper deck. "Do you two have any ideas?"

"Unless we can make a really big fire, no," Aang admitted.

"Fire?" Sokka echoed.

Aang shrugged. "Most animals hate fire. But I don't think my firebending is enough."

"Probably not. We'd need to…duck," he screeched as the Unagi came at them yet again. The ship rocked wildly causing them all to lose their balance. The Unagi roared again and slammed its giant tail against the boat. Aang tried airbending it away, but all he succeeded in doing was angering it even more. The harder they fought it, the angrier it became until it decided to try and sink the ship altogether. It never succeeded, but after five minutes, the upper deck was wet and everyone was drenched. Aang and Katara hurried below deck again to try and blow out all the lanterns before one broke and the ship caught on fire. The lurching of the boat made it far from easy and the two were sure they were going to have bruises after stumbling and falling so much. Once they were back on the upper deck again, it wasn't any better.

"How do we get rid of it?" Katara wondered, over the noise the Unagi was making trying to get close to Sokka. Suki grabbed on to the railing as the wooden ship lurched again, groaning under the weight of the sea creature hovering above it.

"I don't have the slightest idea," she admitted. "It's persistent. Most animals would have given up by now."

Katara pushed some of her wet hair out of her face. "Maybe…"

She was cut off by Sokka's cry as the Unagi snatched his sword from him and tossed it aside. It landed at the stern of the ship with a clank, leaving Sokka defenseless. Its green eyes sparkling, the Unagi opened its mouth wide and made a lunge for Sokka but the warrior rolled out of the way just in time. Unperturbed, it went after Sokka again, but much to its surprise, it was met with the receiving end of a water whip from Aang. Without warning, the Unagi's tail whipped out, sending the airbender flying high into the air like a ball. Before he could even register what was happening and airbend himself down, the Unagi opened its mouth and caught him. Katara turned a deathly pale and Sokka and Suki just watched horrified.

"Aang," Katara choked out, clamping a hand over her mouth in horror. Suki noticed she looked like she would hit the deck any minute. She could imagine just how helpless the waterbender felt.

"Don't worry," Suki reassured her. "There's a chance Aang could still be okay."

"It ate him," Sokka cried. "If he's okay, we need to act fast because I don't how much longer he'll be okay before the Unagi digests him."

"I could swim underneath it and try to get it to cough him back up if that'd work," the Kyoshi warrior said, making a move to dive into the water, but Katara stopped her.

"Are you crazy?" She demanded. "What if you get eaten up too?"

"I don't think you may need to," Sokka said, for the Unagi had made a strange wheezing sort of sound before spitting one slightly dazed airbender into the water. Aang had never been so thankful to be in water because he had been positive if he had ever gotten out of the Unagi's mouth, he'd smell like rotten elephant Koi fish for the rest of his life. By the time the Unagi had realized it had lost its catch, Aang was safely back on the ship. He didn't even have a minute to take in the others' reactions because as soon as his feet touched the deck, Katara had thrown her arms around him and enveloped him in a hug. She was sobbing so hard, Aang was nearly afraid to ask her what was wrong.

"I thought I lost you," she whispered.

"Please," he said, laughing weakly and returning the hug. "It'll take more than a giant sea monster to get rid of me."

In spite of the tears cascading down her face, Katara smiled. Enraged, the Unagi slammed the boat again and Katara heard something below deck fall. Exchanging worried glances, they hurried below deck again.

Below deck, a few of the decorations had fallen over, but everything else was securely fastened in its place. Aang noticed an extra sword hanging in its scabbard on the wall and snatched it before he and Katara returned to the upper deck, where Sokka was unsuccessfully trying to hold off the Unagi.

"Some help would be great," he cried as the Unagi sprayed water all over them. Aang just handed Sokka the extra sword. "That works."

Sokka was about to direct the Unagi's attention to himself in a futile attempt to keep it from attacking Suki who it seemed to like, but Katara stopped him despite his protests.

"Aang almost got eaten by that thing," she said. "I won't let you get eaten, too."

Sokka was about to object to that, when Suki gave a surprised yelp and was tossed off the boat. Instead of landing in the Unagi's mouth as Aang had, she managed to land on its back and the giant sea creature thrashed frantically in an attempt to get her off and she fell into the water with a loud splash. When she surfaced, the Unagi was towering above her.

"Swim!" Sokka cried, but Suki seemed unable to hear him over the roar of the creature.

"I don't know what to do," Sokka said, to Aang and Katara. "If we do something to it, we might hurt Suki."

Katara bit her lip, her mind working furiously when suddenly she noticed the outline of the full moon from the corner of her eye. And suddenly, it hit her full force. The feelings she had worked so hard at quelling came back hundred fold. She could feel the pulse of everyone and everything around her and the moon was calling. She hated that feeling. It took just one look at the moon for everything to come back; she'd been fine until she glanced at it. Sighing, she turned to face her brother.

"Sokka, I think I know how to help Suki, but you have to promise not to get mad."

Sokka just smiled reassuringly. "How can I get mad if you save someone's life?"

Katara didn't answer him, but merely turned to look at Suki. She either seemed to have accepted that the Unagi was going to eat her or she was still in shock because she wasn't moving. Just as the Unagi made a lunge for her, Suki felt herself being dragged under water. There was nothing pulling her down and the water wasn't turbulent but against her own will, she felt herself being pulled through the water and then suddenly propelled upwards. When she surfaced she was closer to the boat. Effortlessly, the giant sea monster caught up with her and without warning, Suki felt herself plunge down into the waters again. She had no idea what was going on, but the ship was just within her reach. When she was pushed to the surface this time, Sokka was waiting to help her up.

"Sokka, did you see that?" She demanded. The warrior nodded. "I wasn't swimming. I mean, I was, but I wasn't controlling myself. It was like someone was controlling me."

Sokka just smiled at Katara but the waterbender looked like she was suddenly sick. Suki wondered what was wrong, but when Katara turned away, she figured she must have done something wrong again because Katara didn't look too happy.

"Suki will probably think I'm a monster too now," she said, vigorously rubbing away the tears that were starting to fall.

"No, she won't," Aang assured her. From behind them, the sound of teeth and metal clashing echoed. Aang looked over his shoulder to see Sokka wrestling his sword from the Unagi.

"You didn't see how scared she looked when I was bloodbending her."

"I think it was just shock," Aang replied. "It'll wear off, you'll see."

Katara just put a hand over her mouth. "I can't believe I just did that."

"Katara, you saved her."

"But she's my friend. I promised myself I would never use it on any of you and I did." She was in tears again and Aang just wrapped her in an embrace. The prospect of eating two people at once was suddenly quite appealing to the Unagi because it suddenly made a beeline straight for Aang and Katara. The only warning they got was Sokka screaming their names before teeth gnashed above them. If they hadn't ducked, Sokka was positive they'd have been eaten alive. The Unagi tried again, but a sudden gust of air knocked it back. Enraged and hissing, its giant tail came up and nearly capsized the boat but the wooden ship righted itself again, which only seemed to make the beast angrier. This time, its tail hit the main sail and the entire structure came crashing down. Sokka just groaned, knowing there was no way to fix it.

"We're doomed," Sokka said to Suki.

Katara just rolled her eyes. "You are such a pessimist," she muttered.

"Do _you_ have any ideas?" Sokka asked as the ship lurched backward. Katara slipped and hit her head.

"No," she replied, grimacing and wringing some water out of her hair. "But we're not doomed."

"Yeah," Sokka said, offhandedly to Suki. "We're doomed. I knew we should have just taken Appa, but no, I had to open my mouth and ask Dad for a boat."

"Sokka," Aang sighed. "It's fine. We'll just have to…"

"Jump," the warrior cried as the Unagi came after them again.

"If we use bending to get to boat to sail, how fast do you think we can go?" Suki wondered.

"Not fast enough to get away from it," Aang said.

Katara frowned. "Then maybe we have to get it away from us."

"What…?" Sokka began, but then realization suddenly dawned on him. "Oh. Are you sure you want to do that?"

"Do we have much of a choice at this point?" She asked, dully.

"Well, if you can," was all Sokka said before she began bloodbending again. It wasn't easy given the Unagi's size but somehow, she managed it. For a full minute, the Unagi was completely under her control, but she could feel it resisting her. Despite the full moon, it was so much harder to bloodbend on a giant creature like the Unagi than she thought possible.

"I don't think I can do it," she said at last, pausing to catch her breath. "It's too big."

Sokka looked dejected. "Any ideas?"

"I can keep trying," Katara suggested but Aang just shook his head.

"You'll wear yourself out."

"So what?" she demanded, irritably. "I've had enough of this stupid sea monster." But before she could, the Unagi had gotten hold of Aang again and was trying to eat the airbender. If Katara wasn't already irritated, she was sure she would have burst into tears again. With the full moon behind her, she bloodbended the Unagi towards the ship. Suki looked surprised, because although Katara looked like she was waterbending, there was no water involved. She was even more surprised when the Unagi gently dropped Aang back on the deck of the ship and when it swam away, making strange movements.

"What just happened?" the Kyoshi warrior wondered, as Katara sank to the floor in exhaustion.

"Katara just bloodbended the Unagi away," Sokka cried gleefully, as the giant sea creature cast them one last look and swam away. "I never want to see another sea monster again."

"You're crazy," Aang whispered to Katara, kneeling beside her and giving her a hug.

She flashed him a tired smile. "I know."

"You shouldn't have done it though. You look exhausted."

"It wasn't easy because it's so huge," she admitted. "But I had to do something or it would have eaten you."

"I'd have figured something out before it did," he replied.

"And if you hadn't?"

"Then it probably would have eaten me."

And they both burst out laughing.

"I hate to interrupt, but would someone please tell me _what_ bloodbending is?" Suki demanded.

Katara just sighed and Aang helped her up. "I learned it from an old lady who was originally from our tribe. She discovered a way to use waterbending to control people."

"Control people?" Suki echoed. "Like puppets? Against their will?"

Katara nodded. "People and animals are really just sacks of water if you think about it. She wanted to teach me how to control then. I wasn't going to learn at first, but I was forced to. If I hadn't…"

"If you hadn't?" Suki prodded.

"I probably would have killed Aang," Sokka interjected. "Hama used her bloodbending on us."

"Oh. Sounds awful," Suki said, sadly. "I can see why you never talk about it."

Katara nodded.

"So, was it you bloodbending me earlier?"

Katara nodded again. "I wouldn't have done it but the Unagi was going to eat you. I'm sorry."

Suki just laughed and hugged her. "Don't be. Because of you I'm alive, we all are. You saved us."

"Hardly," Katara muttered. "But you're not mad or upset?"

"Why would I be?" Suki demanded

"People, like that merchant, are scared of it. They probably think I'm a monster."

"What? That's not true. Having the art doesn't make you a monster or bad, Katara. It's how you use it that counts," Suki said, gently. "And you're probably going to hate me for this, but I'm not sorry you learned bloodbending and decided to use it. It saved my life and I can probably never make it up to you."

"I don't know about you two, but I'm going to go dry off," Sokka said and Suki just chuckled and followed him, muttering something about his tendency to ruin happy moments.

"We should probably change too, shouldn't we?" Katara wondered.

"Or I could just do this," Aang said, using his airbending to dry them and the deck.

Katara gave a small smile. Aang turned to go below deck, but she stopped him.

"Aang, you're not mad I used bloodbending, are you?"

"No," he replied. "Like Suki said, you saved us, so why would I be? Besides, it's the second time you used bloodbending to save me so I can't be angry, can I?"

She shrugged and sighed tiredly. "I don't know. But I…I did it for you."

"What?"

"Bloodbending. I wasn't going to use it, but when the Unagi almost ate you a second time, I felt like I had to or…" She left her sentence unfinished and started out at the vast expanse of sea before them. The reflection of the full moon was wavering in the water and the gentle sound of the waves lapping against the boat was soothing. If Aang hadn't been with her, Katara was sure she would have fallen asleep right there.

"You didn't have to do it for me, especially since it affects you so much" Aang said, quietly. From below deck, Sokka and Suki announced they were going to bed and for the first time, Aang noticed how late it was. The prospect of going to bed was inviting, but he wondered if Katara would even make it as far as her room before falling asleep.

"But I wanted to."

"Why?"

She shrugged. "Love makes people do crazy things and you keep doing stuff like that for me."

He just laughed. "Yeah, but next time, don't do something like that for me if it's going to drain all your energy."

"So you can and I can't?" she demanded, sleepily.

"Technically, I can't make you not do it," he said, wrapping his arm around her. "But I wish you wouldn't."

"I'd do it anyway," she mumbled against him.

In spite of himself, Aang laughed. "We could argue all night, but you should get some rest," he said, scooping her up and setting off for her room.

"I can walk," she protested, yawning.

"With your eyes closed?" He teased. "I don't think so."

"But…"

"I'm just repaying a favor."

She opened her eyes and gave him an amused look. "By carrying me to my room?"

"Well, you saved me twice today, so it's the least I could do."

She closed her eyes and laughed softly. "If you say so."

Katara was asleep by the time Aang set her in her bed, but the instant her head hit the pillow, her eyes fluttered open.

"Aang?"

The airbender paused by her bed and turned to face her. "Yeah?"

"Earlier today, when you said you'd still want me around even if others didn't because they thought I was a monster, did you mean it?"

He nodded. "Of course I did."

"I know it won't happen, but if something like that did and you were the only one, I'd be happy," Katara murmured, smiling faintly.

Aang just gave her a gentle kiss before leaving. He made it as far as the door this time, before Katara stopped him.

"Aang?"

She was already half asleep by the time he responded. "Yeah?"

"I love you."

* * *

_Thanks for reading and a special thank you to crisy93 for letting me use the idea- I hope there was enough bloodbending in it ;). And a very special thank you to everyone who reviewed. You're all amazing!_

_~ Cassie_


	66. From the Heart

_This is an old oneshot I wrote a while ago and never posted. Since it was finished, I thought I'd post it as a filler since I'm still working on a couple of requests from Sylvanna, Emmeline4theoceans, and PandaLily22. Hopefully I can have those up soon. Happy readings! _

_Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar. :(_

* * *

**LXVI. From the Heart**

_"For it was not into my ears you whispered, but into my heart. It was not my lips you kissed, but my soul."_

~Judy Garland

When Katara awoke in the morning, a grayish hazy light was filtering into the bedroom from her partially open curtains. Outside, the sky was a pasty gray and rain clouds loomed dark and heavy over the city. A cool breeze was blowing and Katara felt herself shiver underneath the covers. It wasn't quite yet winter and autumn had just barely started, but Katara felt like she had been left to wander the South Pole without her parka. It seemed like no matter how tightly she wrapped herself up in the blankets, she couldn't get warm enough. Resting her head on the pillow and closing her eyes, she promised herself five more minutes of sleep before getting up but didn't actually wake up for another few hours. When she finally made any attempt to get up, it was to the feel of something cool being pressed against her forehead. She could faintly hear someone calling her name and struggled to open her eyes, but they felt heavy and her head was throbbing painfully. When she finally managed to open her eyes, her vision was cloudy and dark spots loomed large, threatening to plunge her back into darkness. Again, something cold was pressed to her forehead and when her vision finally cleared she noticed Aang standing over her, a worried expression on his face.

"Katara, are you okay?" It seemed like a stupid question to ask, because she looked terribly sick, but he asked it anyway.

Talking seemed like too much of an effort at the moment, so she just nodded.

"You've been asleep for a really long time," Aang said.

"What time is it?" she whispered.

"Past noon," Aang replied. "You were asleep when I left this morning so I thought maybe you were just sleeping in, but when I came back to get some stuff I had forgotten, you were still asleep."

Katara sighed, suddenly remembering that Aang had several meetings to attend this week with Zuko, the Earth King, and even some members of the Order of the White Lotus. Zuko hadn't been too happy about it, especially since he was forced to leave Mai and spend the entire day holed up in a secluded chamber tucked away in the mountainside to ensure secrecy. Most of the officials thought it was crazy, but in spite of that, they had to admit they got the most work done there because there weren't any distractions. But personally, Katara thought the meetings were stupid because Aang always left early in the morning and never came back until late at night. He always looked so tired and kept telling her that the meetings were pointless because everyone seemed to argue all the time instead of trying to solve anything when they could have been out helping people rebuild villages and other important things. She knew the feeling. She'd been asked to solve a few problems too, though they were often mere squabbles or fights over silly things. One minister hadn't been able to work with some of the elder councilmen because his wife was from the Northern Water Tribe and his small son was a waterbender, which he had kept a secret. The officials weren't pleased to discover this, because, if they had sons or daughters at all, they were firebenders and the minister was the first to break tradition and have a waterbender as a son. Katara had practically yelled at them and forced them to work together (which worked out very well in the end), but she knew just what Aang meant.

"Do you want me to stay?" Aang asked, breaking her from her thoughts.

Katara sat up and shook her head. "No, you go back. You'll have so much work to do if you stay and somehow, I don't think Zuko would be too happy if you left him there alone. I'll be alright."

The airbender looked less than convinced but he went albeit reluctantly.

The afternoon and evening were horribly slow for Katara. She was far too tired to do much of anything and kept sneezing too often. Her whole body ached, as if she had just cleaned an entire palace in one day and despite lighting the hearth, she was shivering so uncontrollably that she didn't know how she managed to get up off the couch and leave the warm confines of the blankets to make her lunch. She was hardly in the mood to eat anything, but she knew not eating would just make things worse, so she ate her lunch as quickly as she could and returned to her spot on the couch and waited. And waited. Time passed by agonizingly slow and it felt like forever before afternoon slipped into evening. When she finally felt up to it, she made her way to the kitchen and began making dinner. When she was done and the table was set, she just sat down and stared despondently at the empty seat across from her. She knew she should have eaten then but she was so tired, she just fell asleep at the table, waiting for Aang to return.

* * *

"Wouldn't you say so, Avatar?"

Aang snapped out of his pensive mood and looked up to find an elderly official appraising him with a less than amused glance. Since returning to the meeting, he'd been too distracted to pay any attention to anything and he'd lost count of how many times the officials tried to get him to concentrate. Normally, he wasn't like this, but at the moment, he was too busy worrying about Katara to really care what the officials were talking about. He felt bad for just leaving her all alone when she was sick and knew he shouldn't have but he also knew that Katara probably would have forced him to go back to the meeting if she found out he had left just for her.

"Avatar," the official said again, giving Aang an irritable look. "Have you been paying attention to anything that was said?"

Aang nodded.

"Then what are your ideas on the Earth King's decision to continue trade with the Fire Nation colonies in the Earth Kingdom?"

"Shouldn't you ask the Earth King?" Aang replied, earning a few laughs from the others and a glare from the elderly official.

"No need to be so cheeky, Avatar," the official snapped. "I understand that we're boring company for someone such as yourself, but we have work to do."

"I wasn't trying to be rude," the airbender said, hastily. "I just thought the Earth King should have the final say on the matter because it's his kingdom, not mine."

"He's right," someone else said and the elderly official turned to the Earth King for his opinion which King Kuei readily gave. He and the elderly official spent the rest of the meeting discussing the matter and it was past midnight by the time the meeting was adjourned. Aang hoped Katara wasn't still up waiting for him, but knowing her, he guessed she probably was. Contrary to his expectations, he found the waterbender fast asleep at the dinner table, curled up on the chair with her head resting on the table. The table was set for two, but it was clear from the empty plates that Katara hadn't eaten anything for dinner. The food she had prepared earlier had long since gotten cold and the fire she had made was nothing more than a few tiny flames struggling to grow on some sorry looking kindling. Smiling to himself, he picked her up and took her back to her room, resisting the urge to answer her when she mumbled his name in her sleep. As soon as Katara was in her bed, Aang made his way back to the kitchen and reheated the dinner and took some back to Katara's room.

"Katara?" He whispered, gently shaking her awake. "Wake up."

Katara's eyes fluttered open and she blinked sleepily. "Aang?" she murmured, drowsily. "You're back. What time is it?"

"Past midnight," he replied. "You didn't eat dinner."

"I know," she replied, curling up on her side and wrapping the mass of blankets that were on her bed, tightly around herself. "I was waiting for you."

"You shouldn't have," he laughed, handing her a plate of food.

Katara sat up and smiled, in spite of how she felt. "I wanted to," She said, taking the plate. "Keep me company?"

"Way ahead of you," the airbender replied, pointing to a second plate that he had brought with him. Katara laughed.

"How long have you been asleep?" Aang asked.

Katara shrugged. "I don't know. I fell asleep after I made dinner, I think, so for a few hours maybe. But you didn't have to bring me back here. We could've just eaten at the table."

"I know, but you looked so comfortable there," he teased and Katara just smiled.

They finished dinner rather quickly and by the time Aang had finished washing the two dishes and clearing the table so Katara wouldn't have to do it in the morning, the waterbender was already fast asleep again. The following morning, despite feeling worse than ever, Katara practically forced Aang to go to the meetings in spite of his offers to stay at home with her.

"It's just a fever," she said. "I'll be fine." She knew Aang still wasn't convinced but she refused to let him stay at home because of her. If she let him stay with her for one day, he'd never leave until she was completely better and he'd have a mountain of work to catch up on. As silly as it sounded, she didn't want to be the reason he had so much work to do. So Aang once again found himself at the meeting, listening as the other members put forth idea after idea while he worried about Katara. The waterbender, meanwhile, sat at home and mostly did nothing. After cooking again and building another fire, she returned to her place on the couch and waited for Aang. Hours must have passed and it seemed forever before afternoon arrived. Katara ate lunch, washed the dishes and did some laundry, sewed a bit, and sat in front of the fire again and waited. She was bored out of her mind and she just couldn't seem to get rid of the aches that came with the fever. All she wanted to do was go to bed and sleep until she was better, but she forced herself to stay awake since she had been sleeping so much. So, she stared blankly out the window. The sky outside was gray again, and a biting wind was blowing. It was unusually cold for early autumn and as most people had stayed indoors to avoid the bleak weather, there weren't even people to watch. After five minutes, even looking out the window had bored her, so Katara forced herself up and decided to clean Sokka's room, for lack of anything better to do. He and Suki had gone to Kyoshi Island for a week, and Katara had meant to clean his room the day he had left (since Sokka hardly cleaned it himself) but she had forgotten. As she passed Suki's neat room and made her way to Sokka's she wished they were there. At least then, her fever would be bearable because she'd have found something to do with Sokka and Suki to forget about the aches and pains and how sick she felt. But, more than anything, she wished Aang was there. She wished he didn't have to go to the meetings and that he didn't have any work to do so they could just spend time together. And she wished he had stayed home, in spite of how she flatly refused to let him when he had offered to earlier that morning.

Thinking of the airbender made Katara wish he would return home early, even though it was only midafternoon. All plans of cleaning her brother's room forgotten, Katara invariably found herself at the doorway to Aang's room. Inside, Momo was sitting abjectly on the window sill, his ears drooping and his tail slowly swishing back and forth. When Katara entered the airbender's room, the lemur gave her a pitiful glance and Katara took a seat on Aang's bed, following Momo's gaze outside.

"You miss him too, don't you?" She asked, and Momo just chirped sadly as if to say yes. Katara sighed and the lemur abandoned his post to sit on Aang's pillow and stare despondently at the doorway as if the airbender would enter any second. Katara just curled up on his bed, burying her face in the sheets which smelled like the crisp autumn breeze. It reminded her of Aang and she suddenly wished he was there. At that moment she had never wanted anyone as badly as she wanted Aang. She wanted him to just walk in and surprise her, to tell her that he wouldn't have to go to the meetings anymore. She wanted him to hold her until she was warm again, to have him make her laugh until she was in stitches and forgot all about being sick. She wanted him to just be with her, because Aang could make her feel better like no one else could. Every fiber of her being ached for him, but she knew it would be hours yet before he returned. Sighing to herself, Katara closed her eyes and before she knew it, she was fast asleep.

When she woke again, it was darker than usual and she could hear the steady rhythm of rain hammering away on the roof. The house suddenly seemed colder than ever but Katara was too tired to get up and light the hearth or make something warm to drink. She thought she heard the front door open and desperately wished it was the young Avatar. With bated breath, she waited to hear him say hello or call her name, but nothing happened.

"Aang?" she called, weakly and Momo instantly perked up. His ears twitched in the direction of the door but, sensing nothing, he immediately gave a melancholy chirp and went to curl up beside the waterbender. Katara suddenly remembered that Aang seldom came home before midnight and felt tears prick at the back of her eyes. Aang was probably still at the meeting, helping Zuko and the others with matters far more important than a sick waterbender. Sensing something wrong, Momo looked up at her questioningly and Katara gave him a sad smile.

"Sorry Momo," she whispered, stroking his fur. "I don't know what's wrong with me." The lemur just nuzzled her as if to say he understood and dozed off. Katara was awake for a few minutes longer, just staring into space and wiping away a few tears before sleep claimed her again.

* * *

Aang had never been so eager to leave a meeting in his life. At the moment, the prospect of drafting a proposal wasn't nearly as appealing as returning home and making sure Katara was okay. The meetings were supposed to end well before midnight, but for some reason they had been going on for hours, even in spite of all the work being accomplished. He had assumed that the meeting would end early because of the bad weather, but it hadn't. So midnight had found the airbender walking home as fast as he could while using waterbending to keep the rain off of him. By the time he had reached his house, it was raining harder and Aang was grateful to be indoors.

Inside, everything was dark, much to Aang's surprise. He had told Katara not to wait up for him like she sometimes did, but regardless of whether or not she stayed up, the waterbender always left a light on for him. But today, there wasn't any and Katara was nowhere to be found. When he went to the kitchen, he found the ingredients for tea on the counter and the tea kettle waiting to be filled. The sink only had two dishes in it and the airbender assumed Katara had fallen asleep again without making or eating dinner. He went to her room to ask her if she wanted anything, but much to his astonishment, she wasn't there, either.

"Maybe she just went out somewhere," he said to himself, but he ruled out that idea as soon as he remembered the rain. Katara wasn't stupid enough to wander out on her own into a rainstorm when she was sick. Sighing, the airbender made his way to his room, deciding on what to do, when he noticed two strange objects on his bed. Using his firebending for a little light, he cautiously approached his bed and nearly laughed out loud when he realized that it was only Katara and Momo. The lemur seemed to be sleeping peacefully enough, but even in the dim light, Aang could make out a few lingering tears on Katara's face. He wondered if he should wake her up, but decided against it and gently repositioned her so her head was resting on his pillow. He scooped up the sleeping lemur and after placing a blanket on Katara, set Momo back down where he had been sleeping before. Deciding it wouldn't be best to sleep in his bed, even though there was room, he settled for sleeping on his chair by his desk. He managed a full two hours of sleep before being awakened by Momo's chattering. The lemur was unusually excited about seeing him again and all the noise woke Katara up too.

"Sorry," the airbender apologized, once Momo had finally stopped chirping and running back and forth between Katara and Aang. "I didn't mean to wake you up."

"You didn't," she said, laughing softly and lighting a lamp. She was surprised to discover she was still in Aang's room and that he had given up his bed for her. "Oh, Aang, I'm so sorry. I didn't realize I took your bed."

"It's okay," he replied, smiling. "You look like you could use it. You're tired."

"So are you," she pointed out, coughing.

"But I'm not the one who's sick."

"But you're the one who has to go to that meeting tomorrow. Where will you sleep?" She demanded, after another round of coughing had subsided.

"I'll be fine wherever I sleep so don't worry about me," Aang replied.

"But I feel bad," Katara protested. "You won't have anywhere to sleep."

"Yes I will," he replied.

"If you say so," she muttered, blowing out the lamp. Aang thought she had gone back to sleep, but her voice suddenly issued out from the dark.

"Don't go."

"What?" he asked.

"To the meeting tomorrow," she clarified. "Don't go."

"Why not?" Aang wondered.

"You look so tired," Katara responded. "There's such a thing as working too hard. And I don't want you to." The last part was uttered so softly Aang barely caught it.

"I probably won't."

"Good. You shouldn't," Katara murmured, drifting off to sleep.

"Feel better," he whispered before going to sleep himself.

The following morning, Aang was up early as usual but after spending half the night listening to Katara cough and sneeze, he had made up his mind not to go to the meeting. He didn't think the officials would be too pleased and, Zuko would probably burn him to a crisp, if it were possible, the next time they met, but Aang didn't care. Katara's fever had worsened and it wasn't as if he was going to get anything done at the meeting because he'd be too preoccupied thinking about Katara. In any case, he didn't think it was safe to leave her home alone because she was constantly drifting into and out of consciousness and sometimes, she was delirious. Aang had half a mind to find some frozen wood frogs for her like he had before, but he hadn't the slightest idea where they would be and he was hesitant to leave Katara alone. So they spent most of the day together, sitting in front of the hearth and talking, whenever Katara was awake. Sometimes, she'd wake up from a nap, delirious and it was everything Aang could do to draw her out of it. Thankfully, her delirium never lasted for long and she'd snap out of it within minutes. But as the day wore on, Aang couldn't tell if Katara was getting better or worse. She'd hardly eaten lunch, fallen asleep sewing something, and fallen asleep at the dinner table again. Sometime later, Aang had given up trying to get her to eat altogether and had carried her back to her room, but the instant he set her down, Katara was awake again.

"Don't go."

In the darkness of her unlit room, it was hard to make out what she was doing but Aang knew she was watching him.

"I'm not going to the meeting," he chuckled. "I stayed home all day like I said I would."

"No," she sighed. "Don't leave. Stay with me."

"You won't get any rest if I do," he pointed out, taking a seat beside her.

"I don't need any," she coughed and Aang wondered whether she was delirious again.

"Katara, you don't know what you're talking about."

"Yes I do. I'm fine."

"No, you're not."

"Of course I am."

"Katara…"

"Shut up, Aang."

In spite of her previous comment, Aang burst out laughing. He still couldn't see Katara in the dark, but he guessed she was glaring at him.

"What's so funny?"

"You are," he replied. "You're…"

"If you say delirious, I'll scream," she threatened.

"I was going to say hilarious," Aang explained.

He was only greeted by silence.

"Why didn't you come?" Katara asked, after some time had elapsed.

"Where?"

"Here," Katara said. "I wanted you to stay, but you left."

"I offered to stay, but you said no," Aang pointed out, unsure of whether she was delirious or not at this point.

"But you could have still stayed."

"Katara, just go to sleep."

"So you're leaving?"

"What? Of course not."

"You are," she said, with conviction.

"No, I'm…"

"Don't go," she whispered, burying her face in the fabric of his robes. "I'm not insane, I swear."

"I know you're not," he laughed, kissing her gently. "But you really do need sleep because you're not making much sense now."

"Will you be here when I wake up?" she wondered.

"I already told you a thousand times, I'm not leaving, so please just go to sleep."

"Aang?"

"Yeah?"

"Will you ever marry me?"

If he hadn't already been sitting, Aang was sure he could have been knocked over with a feather. "What?"

"Please," she begged, tiredly. "I just want to know."

"Katara, go to sleep. You have no idea what you're saying."

"I do too," she argued, yawning.

Aang didn't say anything, so Katara tried again.

"Aang?"

"What?"

"Are you going to answer my question?"

"Yes."

When Katara awoke the following morning, she felt much better until she remembered her conversation with Aang the previous night. Just thinking about it made her shudder. If delirium could make her that crazy, she wondered what effect other things such as cactus juice might have on her.

"I'm such an idiot," she groaned, burying her face in her hands when she thought of everything that she had said. She wondered what Aang had thought of her rambling. He probably thinks I'm insane, she thought. Thinking of the airbender made her wonder where he was. Getting out of bed, she tiptoed to the door, surprised to hear voices raised in argument. From her room she couldn't see their visitors so she moved silently through the corridors of their house to get a better look at their guests. She was surprised to find and elderly looking official with graying hair and the minister she had helped in an animated discussion with Aang. She wondered what had prompted them to drop by unannounced, but that was revealed when the elderly official practically yelled at Aang for not showing up to the meeting the previous day. Aang calmly replied that he had been taking care of Katara to which the official pointed out that he wasn't doing his duty.

"You can't abandon your job just because one waterbender gets sick," he said, frowning. "Your duty is to the world, Avatar."

"Maybe, but Katara is my world."

Katara had never been so thankful the officials and Aang couldn't see her because she was certain her face was bright red. She was flattered that Aang had put her before helping the world, but she didn't see how that would help him get out of this mess. The official didn't look too pleased and the minister wasn't exactly happy either.

"But you can't just abandon your job for some waterbender," the official huffed.

"I'm not," the airbender said.

"Good. Then we'll see you at the meeting this afternoon?"

Aang shook his head. "I can't go."

"You can't go or you won't?" the minister wanted to know.

"I won't."

"Why not? Taking care of someone doesn't excuse any of us from our duties."

"Then what does?" Aang wondered.

The official frowned. "Whether or not you choose to come is up to you, Avatar, but think about what I said." Without saying goodbye, the two simply walked out and Momo chirped irritably at them. Katara came to join them and watched the officials leave.

"They're just bursting with happiness, aren't they?" she asked, sarcastically.

Aang chuckled. "Glad to see you're better."

She gave a faint smile. "Me too. But I'm really sorry for the things I said last night," she blurted out, blushing. "I didn't mean what I said or most of it, anyway."

"It's okay," Aang laughed. "It was kind of funny, especially when you told me to shut up."

"Sorry."

"Don't be. I figured it was the fever talking, not you."

"Most of it was," Katara admitted. "But some of it was true. I did want you to stay even though I told you not to."

"Then why didn't you just say so?"

"I didn't want to be the reason you had a ton of work to catch up on," she admitted, meeting his gaze.

"I haven't really been doing anything at those meetings other than giving my opinion on topics that have nothing to do with me," Aang replied. "It's not like I'd have much to catch up on."

"So then what were those officials going on about?" Katara asked. Aang shrugged. "You should have told them you _were_ doing your duty by helping me."

"I didn't just stay here because it was my duty as the Avatar to help you, though," Aang said. "I stayed because I wanted to and it was the right thing to do; you always stayed with me when I was sick. I couldn't concentrate anyway, because I was too busy thinking about you. You're more important than some meeting."

"Either way, I'm glad you stayed," Katara admitted. "Momo and I were really bored without you."

The lemur chirped as if to agree with her and the two burst out laughing. Suddenly, Katara remembered something she had asked Aang last night when she had still been delirious. He had given her a confusing answer and she wondered if he would answer the question properly now that she was all better and talking sense.

"Katara?"

She snapped out of her thoughts and blushed. "Yeah?"

"You got quiet all of a sudden."

"I was just wondering if you remembered a certain question I asked you last night." She replied, smiling devilishly.

It took him a moment to understand which question she was referring to and Aang nodded. "It's not something I'd forget easily," he laughed.

Throwing caution to the wind, she continued. "Did you ever answer it?"

"Yes."

"Yes you answered the question or is 'yes' the answer to the question?"

"What do you think?" Aang laughed, grinning mischievously. His gray eyes were twinkling and Katara wasn't quite sure what to think. But when he wrapped his arms around her and kissed her, she realized he had already told her everything she needed to know in that one kiss.

* * *

_Thanks for reading. I hope it was okay. Thank you to everyone who left such lovely reviews. You're all wonderful. ^.^_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	67. The Avatar's Love

_This is an old oneshot I wrote a few months ago. I know I promised I'd try and have some of the requests posted but I've been really busy lately and I've probably spent a little too much of my free time soaking in all the good Korra news (which was so interesting and left me wanting to know more) than writing. I' still working on requests from Sylvanna, Emmeline4theoceans, PandaLily22 and Sam1247, so hopefully I can have those up soon. But for the next two weeks I'll probably be posting old oneshots, if I post at all since I won't have much time to write (exams and stuff -_-). Anyway, enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar :(_

* * *

**LXVII. The Avatar's Love**

"_Love is not written on paper, for paper can be erased._

_Nor is it etched on stone, for stone can be broken._

_But it is inscribed on a heart and there it shall remain forever."_

~Unknown

It is said that the Avatar's love is unequal and immeasurable. Katara was just beginning to realize why.

* * *

Aang had known for quite some time that almost all the eligible boys in the Southern Water Tribe were falling head over heels for Katara, but he wasn't the type prone to extreme jealousy, so when they started following her around and asking her to spend some time with them, he didn't really care. He did find it a little annoying that he hardly got to spend any more time with her but he never complained or did anything about the young men constantly following the waterbender around, even though Katara sometimes wished he would.

"It's really irritating," she had said. "I can't do half the stuff I used to without being cornered by a bunch of men."

Unfortunately, she had a point. She was careful where she went and what routes she took to get there. She often avoided the busiest parts of the town and stayed away from all the places she was known to frequent including Pakku's waterbending school. She was supposed to help him teach waterbending as his assistant instructor, but it didn't really help since most of the benders she was assigned to train were young men who were more intent on learning what she liked than focusing on their waterbending.

"Perhaps it's best if I train them myself," Pakku had said. "They might be advanced benders, but they are still young men and it's probably best if you take some time off from teaching, at least until those boys can learn not to be distracted by a girl."

And so, Katara had willingly given up teaching waterbending. In reality, it should have helped the situation, but it only made it worse.

"It seems that we have a problem," Pakku said, one evening as they all sat around the hearth waiting for Hakoda to return from a fishing trip with Bato. Suki and Kanna gave him a quizzical look.

"This isn't about the ice sculpture Suki broke, is it?" Sokka asked. "It was an accident and really, it was my fault, so…"

"This has nothing to do with you two and everything to do with those two," the old waterbending master said, pointing at Katara and Aang. "I hope you like challenges, Aang."

"What's wrong?" Katara wondered.

"Honestly, there is nothing wrong," Pakku said. "But some of my students, the same boys that follow you around, have been complaining that you're being unfair."

Katara just blinked. "How so?"

Pakku made a face. "Oh, they keep complaining about how you've never spent time with any other boy other than the Avatar and how they're at a disadvantage. I've tried to tell them that this is a battle they won't win, but boys will be boys. They're all set on winning your love, Katara."

Toph, who had been quite until now, snickered and Katara frowned. "I hope you told them that it's not going to happen," the waterbender said.

"I have, but I'm just an old man. What can I do? They're determined to try. In my day, if a young man liked a young woman, he'd ask for her hand in marriage and if she said no, he'd accept that. In any case, they were all set to have a bending battle until someone realized that Aang had an unfair advantage. So, I suggested solving this the old fashioned way."

"The old fashioned way?" Sokka repeated. "But neither of the Water Tribes has done things that way for ages."

"I know," Pakku acquiesced. "But it's the only fair way."

"What is the old fashioned way?" Aang asked.

"It hasn't been used for centuries, but in the old days, making a betrothal necklace wasn't good enough. A young man often had to prove his worth by completing a series of tasks before marrying a young woman," Kanna explained. "That tradition died out long before our time, but it's occasionally used to settle feuds. If a boy completes all the tasks, he gets the prize."

"Meaning me?" Katara fumed.

Pakku shrugged. "They might be crazy, but they're not idiots. They know that completing all the tasks won't make you change your mind about them. So the so-called prize is a spending a day with you. They think _that_ will make you change your mind."

"That's it?" The waterbender smiled in relief. "It's not so bad after all."

"I find this whole thing rather foolish," Pakku said to Katara. "But it seems my advanced class won't practice or is not capable of practicing until they're sure you'll give them a chance."

Katara shrugged. "I don't mind."

"You should be careful, little sister," Sokka teased, knowing that she was confident Aang would win. "Aang might be the Avatar, but that doesn't mean he can handle a challenge."

"Sokka," Suki cried, groaning. "You can be such an idiot sometimes."

Sokka just chuckled.

"Actually," Aang said. "If it's all the same to you, I'd rather not join in on this challenge."

"Why not?" Sokka demanded. "You're the Avatar; you can't be scared by a bunch of waterbenders."

"I'm not scared of them, Sokka," he replied. "I just don't want to give them another reason to be mad at me if I win."

"_If _you win?" Katara echoed. "You have to win. Even if spending a day with one of those waterbenders isn't that bad, I'd rather not if it can be helped."

Aang sighed. "Alright, but if I lose, don't blame me. Challenges like these haven't always been my strong point."

"Need I remind you about the whole fight with Ozai?" Sokka cried. "What do you mean challenges aren't your strong point? You saved the world without killing the one man everyone said you had to kill."

"Yeah, but this is different."

"Yeah, because it's ten times easier."

Aang just rolled his eyes. "Whatever."

"So, who exactly judges these competitions?" Suki wondered.

Pakku shrugged. "This tradition, like I said, died out centuries ago so I'm not really sure. I suppose the girl's family and a neutral member of the tribe did."

"And where are we going to find a neutral member?" Sokka wondered. "I'm sure half the parents in the tribe would love having their son with Katara."

"I don't know," Pakku said again. "As you can see, I wasn't really thinking things through when I suggested this. I just wanted my class to practice. After all, I'm a waterbending instructor, not a matchmaker."

At that moment, Hakoda and Bato walked in with a net full of fish and Sokka suddenly broke out grinning.

"Hi Dad, Bato," the warrior said. Hakoda just smiled in response to his son's greeting but Bato was more suspicious.

"Why are you grinning at me like that, Sokka?" Bato wondered.

"You wouldn't happen to have some time on your hands, would you?"

Bato shrugged. "I might. Why?"

"We need your help."

And just like that, Bato became part of their plan. On a cold, sunny day, nearly a week later, the Water Tribe warrior found himself standing between Hakoda and Pakku, the latter completely unmoved by the horde of people gathered and the former just blinking in surprise as if he hadn't been informed about what was going to take place, even though he had. Bato, for his part, was just interested to see what would happen. He'd never seen things done in this manner and he was curious as to how things would turn out.

Several young men were huddled in a cluster and behind them, the other villagers had gathered. Most of the young men who weren't participating, either because they didn't want to or because they knew it was pointless, were standing near the participants and chatting. Across from them, most of the eligible girls were standing together and talking in hushed whispers, giggling amongst themselves every time their gazes fell upon a young man. Suki had to admit, she didn't like the way some of them were eyeing Sokka, but she wasn't worried about them.

"This is humiliating," Katara muttered, coming to stand beside her. "I wish I didn't have to do this."

"You're not doing anything, though," Suki laughed. "Aang has to do all the work."

Sokka chuckled. "I am so glad I never had to do this."

"Keep talking like that and you might have to," Suki teased.

Toph rolled her eyes at them and turned to Katara. "Hey, Sugar Queen, on the off chance that Twinkle Toes doesn't win and you have to spend a day with one of those losers, can I dress up as you and beat them up?"

"If it would solve anything, sure," she readily agreed. "But how are you going to do that if you can't earthbend?"

"A girl has her ways."

Katara just shook her head and smiled. "Sometimes, I think would have been better off born as a guy."

"Eh, hard to say," Toph returned. "But the challenge is starting so shut up so I can listen. This is going to be hilarious."

Katara muttered something under her breath and turned her attention the waterbenders and Aang lined up before her father, Pakku and Bato. A few of them were smiling eagerly and a couple of them were glaring at Aang. The young Avatar for his part, was wishing he was elsewhere than amid a group of waterbenders who thought he was taking Katara for himself. Honestly, he thought this whole competition was pointless because he hadn't ever stopped any of them from spending time with Katara if they wanted to (she had done that herself), but he didn't tell them that. So, while Pakku explained in a monotone why the participants had all gathered, Aang just waited and counted down the days until the silly challenge was over.

It wasn't a particularly hard test, but they were given time to complete each task. After doing some research, Pakku had come up with some tasks that been used in days gone by. For their first task, they were given twenty four hours to present their most precious item to her and while the waterbenders eagerly set off to find their most precious belongings and present them to her, Katara was left wondering where on earth Pakku had gotten his research from and why her ancestors had adopted such a crude method, because a man's most precious item had no outcome on how a woman would feel about him. At least Katara thought it shouldn't. Still, she was somewhat curious as to what Aang's most precious item was. There were so many possibilities, she couldn't even begin to guess and the suspense nearly killed her. When everyone reconvened the following morning, Katara was slightly eager to see what the waterbenders had come up with. To her dismay, they were mostly material possessions. One young man offered her a sapphire bracelet that had belonged to his great-grandmother and though Katara thought it was beautiful, she was thankful she wouldn't have to actually take anything because it seemed like the man was just offering it to her because it was pretty and valuable. Another presented her with a stunningly crafted wooden fan for ornamentation. Suki seemed to like it very much, but Katara had no idea what she would do with it if she ever had one. A couple of waterbenders presented her with dresses and fine silks and a couple with precious stones, but Katara found the men all rather crazy.

"I seriously doubt a guy's most precious item is a bracelet or a fan," she whispered to Suki.

"Of course it's not," Toph replied. "A real guy would have said a sword or a ship or something. They're just trying to impress you."

"I don't know why they're trying so hard," Katara said. "It's not like they're going to get to marry me if they win. The winner just gets a stupid date."

"I recognize some of those guys," Sokka said, suddenly. "That stupid looking one reminds me of Hahn. He was one of the warriors who fought with us against Zhao. I think he was also one of the ones who were supposed to sneak aboard Zhao's ship with Hahn."

"Is he good looking?" Toph wondered.

"What difference does it make to you?" the warrior wondered.

"I was just wondering. I'd feel bad if he won and I rearranged his face."

"What?"

"Katara and Toph made a deal," Suki explained. "If Aang loses, Toph's going to pose as Katara and beat up the winner."

Sokka chuckled. "I'd love to see that, but it won't happen. You're shorter than Katara and way paler. The winner's bound to see the difference."

"There are plenty of ways for me to disguise myself," Toph retorted. "And the height difference thing doesn't matter because by the time that idiot figures out I'm not Katara I'll have earthbended him to the moon and back."

"Would you three shut up?" Katara said, silencing them. "Aang's up."

They all watched as the airbender stepped forward, fidgeting and waiting to be addressed. Some of the girls were staring at him dreamily, causing some of the men who weren't participating to glare at the young Avatar. Pakku gave a sigh and asked Aang to present his object. The other waterbenders snickered.

"Yeah," they all chorused, smiling amongst themselves. "Tell us what the Avatar's most precious thing in the world is."

"It's not really a thing," Aang said. Katara was even more curious now.

"Well what is it?" Someone demanded.

Aang sighed. "This is probably really cheesy, but it's… Katara," he said, eliciting several sighs from all the young women and causing the said waterbender to blush while Pakku and Hakoda smiled approvingly.

Suki just laughed. "How sweet," she exclaimed. "I'd have thought he'd say Appa or Momo."

"Me too," Katara replied, still somewhat shocked over the newfound knowledge that she was Aang's most precious "thing". Out of everything he could have chosen, she was surprised he picked her.

"This sucks," Toph pouted. "If he keeps that up, Twinkle Toes will win the competition and I won't get to beat up any waterbenders." Her friends stifled a laugh and listened to the next task.

The next task seemed just as strange because the participants were required to make or get her a present and Katara couldn't help but feel her ancestors were either very stupid or very shallow because the participant with the best present, according to Pakku's research, usually won the round. She thought it was stupid because the meanest, rudest bachelor could have made or gotten a girl the most beautiful gift and he would have won the round without anyone realizing what he was really like, but thankfully she wouldn't have to worry about marrying anyone because the winner just got to spend the day with her. She was curious to see what the waterbenders and Aang would come up with this time. She wouldn't have put it past them to get her something pretty just for nothing more than its extrinsic value.

They were given a week to find and/or make something and the instant they were dismissed, a handful of waterbenders boarded their ships or that of their fathers and set sail for some unknown destination. Suki repeatedly asked Katara what she thought the young men would get her, but Katara hadn't the slightest idea. She hoped it wasn't anything too extravagant because she knew she'd feel bad since she wouldn't actually be taking anything anyway. She was dying to know what Aang was making, though, because he had been one of the few that hadn't left the Southern Water Tribe. She assumed that since Aang, Suki, and Toph were staying at their house, the airbender would at least give her a glimpse of whatever it was he was making, but he flatly refused to.

"That's not fair to the others," he pointed out.

"How?" Katara demanded.

"Because I'd know if you liked it or not."

And Katara grudgingly admitted he had a point.

When the week had elapsed and everyone had reconvened, Katara was shocked to discover some of the waterbenders were carrying giant objects with them.

"Someone better tell me all the crazy stuff these idiots made," Toph demanded. "I can't see."

So Sokka filled her in while Suki and Katara just watched.

One had painted an elaborate painting of a waterbender. Katara thought it was nice until she took a closer look and noticed that the waterbender had spelled her name wrong. Another had made an ice sculpture of her but it broke the second another person accidently bumped into. Two waterbenders had gotten her panda lilies and fire lilies but they were half wilted by the time she got them and she was partially thankful because she didn't like fire lilies since they brought back bad memories. Aang's present, however, was by far the smallest but the most intricate. It was a small glass orb with a waterbender in the center , who eerily resembled Katara, standing atop a wave. The sides of the orb had been cut with firebending in such a manner that the remaining parts resembled the outline of the world with every nation from the Water Tribes to the Air Temples represented. All Katara could do was gape at it. Toph, however, frowned when Sokka described it to her.

"Someone seriously needs to have a talk with Aang. He can't win. I'm dying for some fun. I want to beat up some waterbenders."

"Do you?" Pakku asked upon overhearing. A small smile was playing across his lips. "I'll need someone to help me get my advanced class back into…waterbending mode. I could use some help."

Toph grinned. "Sign me up."

Pakku nodded before quieting the crowd and announcing the last task: making necklaces. When Katara asked Pakku why on earth that was part of the competition, he laughed.

"They're young men, Katara. If they're in love, they'll ask you to marry them whether or not they know about you and Aang."

"But you said they knew they weren't going to get to marry me," she replied.

"True, but that didn't stop them from starting to make you a betrothal necklace anyway. I know my students, Katara; when it comes to affairs of the heart, young men can be quite pigheaded. They've been working on the necklaces long before this competition started."

Katara sighed. "At least it's not for real."

Hakoda laughed. "True, but don't be too surprised if any of them ask. Some of them already came to ask for my approval."

"I hope you told them no," Katara said.

"I told them it's for you to decide," her father replied. "Some of them are not bad, so try not to be too rude when you let them down."

"No promises," his daughter replied. But she was smiling.

Several days later, the waterbenders and Aang stood before Pakku, Hakoda, and Bato for the last time, talking amongst themselves. The sun was shining brightly overhead and the snow was sparkling in the light and despite the cold, everyone was smiling. Aang had never been so happy to have the competition come to an end because, quite frankly, he thought it was a waste of valuable time he could have spent with Katara.

Pakku sighed and for the last time had the young men present their necklaces. They were all so pretty, but Katara was positive Aang's would be better. When it was his turn to present, Aang stepped forward but didn't give her anything.

"I don't have a necklace," he admitted and the waterbenders snickered. Katara's heart sank.

"You don't have a necklace?" Hakoda repeated. Aang shook his head. "Why not?"

"I couldn't ask Katara to choose between her mother's necklace and another one," Aang admitted. "So I didn't make one. Or not a real one, in any case."

"Then what did you make?" Bato wondered.

"I didn't know which one she'd want so I made both," Aang said, producing a pendant and a choker. On the pendant, the symbols of air and water were beautifully carved and melded into each other seamlessly. The choker seemed plain black at first but upon further inspection, blue and orange threads were woven together, crisscrossing each other symbolizing the union of air and water.

Bato gave a low whistle and chuckled. "Katara sure knows how to pick them, doesn't she?" he whispered to Hakoda. The Chief smiled and nodded.

"Well," Pakku said. "I think that concludes this competition."

The waterbenders all started talking at once, protesting.

"I think, given Aang's thoughtfulness and all the time and effort he put into his gift and necklace, it's safe to say he won," Hakoda supplied, gently.

"I'll see all of you at six in the morning," Pakku said, turning on his heel and making his way back to the house. The waterbenders protested and Pakku just gave them a small smile. "You all chose to waste your time with this competition instead of practicing, so you'll have to make it up somehow."

"And I get to help," Toph put in, smirking.

"How are you going to do that with earthbending?" Sokka wondered.

"Who said anything about earthbending?" Toph demanded. "Master Pakku said he needs help and I don't need earthbending to beat up those sissies." And Sokka just laughed.

Later that evening, after everyone had gone back to their houses and all the excitement had died down, Katara found Aang outside staring at the ocean. The waves were gently lapping at the frozen shore and in the distance, several penguins were chirping noisily.

"Hi," Katara said, coming to stand beside him. "I think you owe me a date or something like that."

Aang laughed. "I think it's the other way around."

"What were you doing out here?" Katara asked.

"Nothing really," Aang replied.

"Well that's good," Katara laughed. "After that competition, I think you deserve to rest."

"I didn't do much," the airbender said. Katara was about to protest, but stopped when Aang handed her something.

"Why are you giving me this?" Katara wondered, examining the little glass world with the figurine inside. "I can't possibly…"

"I made it for you, silly," he laughed. "And these too." He handed Katara the pendant and the choker.

"They're beautiful," she said. "Thank you."

They were silent for a moment before Katara spoke again.

"Aang, did you mean what you said earlier about me being your most precious thing in the world?"

He nodded simply.

"I thought you'd have said Appa or Momo or something," Katara admitted.

"Appa and Momo are important, but so are you," Aang said. You mean everything to me. I couldn't have done half the things I did without you, Katara."

She just gave him a quick kiss.

"For the record," she said. "If you ever decide to give me a necklace, I'll wear it."

"_If?_" he repeated, laughing. He thought by now Katara would have assumed it was only a matter of _when, _not _if._

She smiled. "Well, I was trying not to sound like I knew you were going to make one."

"And how did you know that?" he wondered.

"Intuition," she said. "And I know you. You're not the type to go to all this trouble for nothing. Besides, if you weren't going to ask me to marry you eventually, I'd have asked you to ask me."

"Why?"

"Because I'm not marrying anyone else, Aang," she said resolutely, meeting his gaze. Her sapphire eyes were sparkling and she was blushing faintly. "After all this time, I can't. So _when_ you make me a necklace, I'll wear it."

Aang smiled.

"But under one condition."

"What?"

"You have to make me an actual necklace, not just a pendant or something. Honestly, I'd prefer it if you don't make me a necklace at all, but you're going to make one even in spite of that, aren't you?"

Aang nodded, smiling. "Of course I am. But I don't want you to have to choose between your mother's and that."

"It's not a choice," Katara said. "My mother's necklace means a lot to me, but it's not mine. If I'm going to spend the rest of my life with you, I want to wear the necklace you made."

"Katara," Aang laughed. "You do realize I haven't asked you to marry me yet, right?"

The waterbender nodded. "I know. But I thought I'd let you know anyway _if _you make a necklace and ask and _if _I say yes." She smiled. "If you asked me right now, I'd say yes. Or ten years later, I'd still say yes. But if you're going to ask at all, don't keep me waiting ten years."

"I wouldn't wait ten years even if you wanted me to," Aang returned.

Katara smiled. "You know, if you didn't ask or you didn't want to, I wouldn't mind. I'm just assuming you do, so I'm telling you this. But if you don't, I'd understand. As long as I'm somewhere in your future, I wouldn't care."

"Katara, you are my future." And as he pulled her closer and kissed her, she thought that this was, quite possibly, one of the best moments of her life.

It is said that the Avatar's love is unequal and immeasurable. Katara now knew why.

* * *

_Thanks for reading and thanks for all the reviews I've gotten so far. You're all amazing :)_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	68. Reminiscence

_I know this is long overdue, but I'm finally getting around to posting some requests and working/finishing up on a few others. All credit for this one (chapter title included) goes to Sylvanna. Thanks for the idea and I hope it's okay :D. Enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar :(_

* * *

**LXVIII. Reminiscence**

_Truly great friends are hard to find, difficult to leave, and impossible to forget._

~ Unknown

Toph felt her back make contact with the hard ground, but only had a moment to take in her surroundings before rolling out of the way to avoid a pillar of flames. Behind her, she could hear the sound of earth being uprooted and through her vibrations, saw a rock whiz past her, straight for Sokka. The warrior ducked but a second rock bowled him over and he waved his arms in defeat. Toph smirked, got to her feet and uprooted larger rocks, bending them towards the center of the makeshift arena but much to her chagrin succeeded in hitting Suki and Mai. As much as she hated to admit it, they were losing the battle. Since the afternoon usually found everyone training, Zuko had come up with the idea to have a bending battle, as it was good practice for everyone. Naturally, being competitive, they had all decided to split up into teams to make the battle fairer. In the end, however, it was everyone against Aang and, at first, the young airbender didn't think that it was fair because even though he could bend all the elements, he didn't think he had mastered earth and fire just yet. But now that they were actually having their mock battle, he was just as surprised as the others to discover he was winning.

Perhaps winning wasn't the right term, because at the moment, Toph, Katara, and Zuko were still left, but considering how many times they had narrowly missed his attacks, it was safe to say he was on his way to winning. The blind earthbender had long ago lost track of how many close calls she had; at the moment the only thing on her mind was defending her title as the world's greatest earthbender because Aang had mastered the earthbending, as much as she hated to admit it. If he ever bothered to learn metalbending or sandbending, she didn't think it would be too long before he surpassed her. She wouldn't have minded if he had, but she was secretly pleased that Aang never seemed to show an interest in either of the two forms of earthbending.

Her attention was suddenly redirected to their makeshift battlefield and Toph had all of a second to jump away before a column of water was splashed on her. Zuko, however, was less fortunate and the blind earthbender suppressed a laugh as she heard him splutter and gasp for breath. Her amusement, however, was short lived because the next thing she knew, she was on the ground and soaking wet.

"Sorry, Toph," Katara apologized as the earthbender got up. "I didn't mean to hit you."

"It's okay," Toph responded, getting up and hurling a rock straight at Aang. The airbender ducked and the rock was thrust aside by Katara's water whip. Zuko came at him again but his fire was deflected by Aang's airbending and extinguished by Katara's waterbending.

"Come on guys," Sokka cried, cheering for Katara, Toph, and Zuko.

"Why is it so important they win?" Mai wondered.

Suki smirked. "Sokka bet that they would win and I bet Aang would win. He just doesn't want to lose for the eighteenth time in a row."

"I'm going to win this bet," Sokka said. "There's no way Aang can beat them. He'd beat them if they attacked him one by one, but not all at the same time."

"I don't know," Suki said, as Aang blocked Toph's earthbending. "It looks like he's mastered earthbending and firebending."

Sokka scowled as Katara was knocked down by a rock. "He could still lose."

Suki just rolled her eyes and turned her attention back to the four remaining benders. It seemed like Katara, Toph, and Zuko were having a battle amongst themselves, because though they always directed their attacks at him, Aang managed to redirect it towards someone else or evade it so that it hit someone else. Even Sokka had to admit he was doing a good job because it seemed like Toph, Katara, and Zuko had more bruises and looked more tired than Aang did.

"Sorry, Toph," Katara cried suddenly, as her water whip missed its intended target and hit Toph instead, sending the blind earthbender reeling backwards.

"It's fine," Toph said, wringing the water out of her hair and clothes. "I'm done for the day anyway."

"You can't quit now," Zuko complained. "We're still…"

"I think Toph has the right idea," Katara interrupted. "Besides, I don't know how much longer I can keep this up."

"Does that mean I won?" Aang wondered. Suki just smirked at Sokka.

"No," Zuko said and Sokka laughed at his girlfriend. "I'm still left."

So while Toph and Katara sat off to the side and watched Zuko and Aang continue to battle it out, Sokka and Suki argued over their bet.

"I think we should get prisoners to take our places the next time Zuko makes us do this," Toph said. "I think I have more bruises than I gave Twinkle Toes."

"I know what you mean," Katara agreed. "But why prisoners?"

Toph shrugged. "They have nothing better to do. And I'm sure they wouldn't mind since half of them are in prison anyway thanks to Aang."

"It's not like they'd win, though," Katara pointed out. "Aang's bending has really improved."

Toph nodded. "Yeah. Unfortunately, he's mastered earthbending which means I can't beat him up anymore."

"Well, you knew he was going to master it someday. He is the Avatar, after all."

"I know," Toph sighed. "But I'll miss beating him up."

Katara chuckled. "I remember when he first learned earthbending."

Toph rolled her sightless green eyes. "Yeah. It took him forever and day to learn how to move a rock."

"But no one picks up bending in a day," Katara pointed out. "Although Aang was able to pick up some basic waterbending moves really quickly."

"You know," Toph said. "I'm kind of glad he didn't learn it all in one day. Being able to teach him earthbending and all helped me improve mine. If he had picked it up right away, I probably wouldn't have improved. And I probably wouldn't have travelled the world either because he wouldn't need my help."

Katara nodded. "Yeah. I'm glad that he didn't learn waterbending in a day either. I don't think I could have gone back to the South Pole after all that travelling we did."

"You sure it wasn't because of Aang?" Toph teased.

"So what if it was?" the waterbender shot back and Toph just snickered.

"I have to admit, even his firebending looks pretty good," Toph said. "I think he's mastered it."

"I wonder how he did it though," the waterbender mused. "He doesn't firebend much, or at least not around me."

The earthbender blinked. "Why not?"

"The first time he tried learning firebending, he tried doing a trick or an advanced move or something and ended up burning me. I think he's been avoiding using firebending around me since then."

"I can see why."

"But it wasn't that bad," Katara objected. "If he hadn't hurt me, I wouldn't have discovered I could heal."

"Then I guess we should thank him," Toph laughed. "Truth is, if he hadn't mastered the elements by now, we wouldn't be here. No one would want to learn waterbending from you if he didn't and if he hadn't learned earthbending properly, any chance I had at starting my own school would have disappeared. I'd probably never win another earthbending tournament again."

"Well it didn't happen," Katara laughed. "So if you still want to start that school. I'm sure you could."

"Oh, I intend to," the earthbender replied. "But for now, I'm content just hanging out with you guys and watching Twinkle Toes beat Zuko up."

"You're right about the whole bending thing though," Katara said. "He really has mastered it." She chuckled. "I remembered being jealous of him for being able to do basic waterbending. He's come a long way since then."

Toph nodded. "Yeah, he really has."

"If it wasn't for Aang, I don't know if I'd be half the waterbender I am now. He always said you had to let go of fear to be a bender. I guess until I met him, I never really did."

"A bit ironic, isn't it?" Toph mused. "If he says to let go of fear, why hasn't he done it and firebended around you?"

Katara was about to reply when she noticed Zuko and Aang had finished. Aang must have won because Sokka was complaining again and Suki was demanding that he pay up. Toph just rolled her eyes and followed Zuko and Mai indoors. Katara, however, waited until everyone had gone in before approaching Aang and asking him to accompany her to the lake. She'd left her water skin there earlier while she and Suki had been doing some laundry. Aang was more than happy to leave all the arguing going on inside and join her and within no time at all, the two had reached the woods that surrounded the lake. Katara hadn't remembered where exactly she had left it so the two split up and searched the general area. Katara found it in no time at all and hurried back to Aang, but moving through the undergrowth wasn't as easy in some places as it was in others. In some places the plants grew so close together, she had to find an alternate route to take because they couldn't part. The forest was also full of burs that stuck to the hem of her dress and her shoes and she was careful they didn't get caught on her skin, but they grew in so many places, she invariably touched one and it latched onto her immediately. She tried pulling it out but the harder she tried, the deeper it buried itself into her flesh. It stung unimaginably and in some places where the tiny spikes had freed themselves, her hand was bleeding. By the time Aang found her, she was in tears and her hand was slightly swollen.

"What's wrong?" he asked and Katara just showed him her hand.

"It won't come out," she said, sinking to the ground in defeat. Aang knelt beside her and gently took her hand.

"They do come out," he said, inspecting the little brown plant. "But…"

"What?"

Wordlessly, Aang showed her his hands. His palms were cut and bleeding and it looked like they had been burned.

"What happened?" Katara demanded, momentarily forgetting about her pain.

"That's what happens when you get rid of them," he said.

"You mean…?" She began, but Aang cut her off.

"Do you trust me?"

Katara just started at him with wide eyes before nodding.

"Then hold still."

Ever so gently, he used his free hand to light the bur on fire with the tiniest of flames. It burned slowly and Katara wanted to pull her hand away, but the bur was withering under the heat. The withered parts, though. were still hot and burned her palm when they flaked off. Katara winced and buried her face in Aang's shoulder as if holding onto him would ward off the pain.

"Sorry," he said, as the last of the tiny, spiked plant withered and fell off. "You should heal your hand."

"How did you know what to do?" she asked, reaching for her water skin.

"Monk Gyatso taught me," the airbender replied. "When we were little, the other airbenders and I used to go all sorts of places and these plants are common almost everywhere. Sometimes, some of us would come back with half a dozen of them stuck on our hands. The monks used another plant to make a paste that caused the burs to fall off, but it would sting like crazy."

"But you used firebending just now."

He nodded, looking somewhat guilty. "When Appa and the other bison were little, the other airbenders and I would take them with us when we explored the mountainside. The burs would get stuck to their fur and the only way we could get them off was by burning them off. It wasn't easy since sky bison, and most animals in general, don't like fire, but it was the only way. The paste the monks used to make never worked on them and I never learned how to make it." He seemed to be apologizing for using firebending on her and Katara wished he wouldn't.

"Aang, I forgave you for burning me the day it happened," she said. "So don't feel bad."

"I can't help it," he sighed. "You got hurt."

"It doesn't matter," she answered. "Because you're a firebender whether you like it or not and you can't stop firebending just because you accidentally hurt me once long ago."

"But…"

"Besides, I like it when you firebend," she blurted out, blushing faintly.

Aang met her gaze. "You do?" She nodded. "Why?"

Wordlessly, she extracted some water from her pouch and placed her hands in his, gently healing them. "It's because of you I have this gift. I'm not sorry you burned me, Aang. I'm actually kind of glad. It did hurt, but you know the saying: no pain, no gain. I wouldn't have discovered I could heal unless I got hurt."

"But I never made up for it."

"Made up for it? You made up for it just now when you used firebending to help me, when you saved the world and when you still accepted me after I hurt you on Ember Island. You've made up for it every day since then so I forbid you, as your Sifu, from feeling bad," she said, smiling at him.

He laughed and helped her up. "Yes, Sifu Katara. But you never healed your hand."

She gazed down at her palm which was slightly red and burned. She smiled and laughed. "I don't want to."

Aang looked confused. "Why not?"

She shrugged. "It'll heal on its own. And this way, you can't say you never made up for hurting me. This is proof you did."

"Did the definition of proof also change?" Aang teased. "That is not proof."

"So, you don't like this proof?" Katara demanded. Aang was about to say something but she cut him off. "Then maybe you'd like this instead?" she said, pressing her lips firmly against his. "How's that for proof?"

"You call that proof?" he asked, smiling when she drew away.

She looked thoughtful for a minute. "No, I call it love," she whispered, before leaning in to kiss him again

* * *

_Thanks for reading! I'm still working on requests from Emmeline4theoceans, PandaLily22, and Sam1247. Hopefully I can get those up soon, but no promises. I will definitely post them, but please don't be mad if it takes me a while ^^. I'm going to be spending the next week studying spanish grammar, plant reproductive cycles, evolution, and all this other crazy stuff that may or may not be worth knowning (-_-), so i might not have the next chapter up until the 12/22 or 12/23. But I do plan on having them up ASAP, so thank you all for being so amazingly patient. And as always, a special thank you to everyone who read and reviewed! You're all wonderful. :)_

_~ Cassie _

_P.S. Just out of curiousity, favorite chapters anyone? ^.^_


	69. Surprises: Part I

know I said I wasn't going to post this until later next week, but I needed to take a break from studying, even if it's a five minute one, just to post this. All credit for this chapter _and the next chapter go to PandaLily22 (a special thank you for the idea and sorry for the ridiculously long wait :D), but I won't post the next chapter until next week (please don't hate me ^^) because it's not quite done yet. Happy Readings!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar. :(_

* * *

**LXIX. Surprises: Part I**

_"There is nothing in the world so wonderful as to love and be loved; there is nothing so devastating as love lost."_

~ Unknown

"Aang, have you seen my dress?" Katara asked from her room in their house in Ba Sing Se. Despite having gone through every drawer in her dresser, her closet, and any other place she could think of, she couldn't find it anywhere. The afternoon was slowly slipping into evening and Katara was anxious to find it.

Aang just looked up from the stack of papers on his desk and shrugged. "I haven't seen it. Why do you need it, though?"

"I'm going out tonight and I need it," came the waterbender's muffled response as she continued searching. Aang suddenly wished he was going out too, but he had to stay indoors and read the files Zuko had sent him from the last meeting he hadn't been able to attend. He didn't see the need for either him or Zuko to sit behind a stack of papers and read drafts and proposals when they could have been out making a difference, but he had learned that the older officials had a tendency to use proposals, drafts, and such before putting any plan into action.

Katara suddenly cried out in joy as she found her dress and hurried to get ready. A half hour later, she was done and standing before Aang with a small smile on her face.

"How do I look?" she asked. Aang was going to say beautiful, but he thought that was an understatement. Personally, he thought Katara was perfection and as she stood before him in that dazzling dress (though in his opinion, she could have made rags look dazzling) with a smile that could light the world, he didn't really know what to tell her.

"Do I really look that bad?" She teased when Aang didn't say anything.

"No," he began. "I was just…"

She laughed. "Calm down. I was just teasing."

"So, why are you dressed up?"

Katara smiled. "I have a date tonight."

"Really?"

She nodded. "I met a handsome warrior when I was at the market the other day and he offered to take me to dinner after he bumped into me and I dropped all my stuff."

"Who is this guy?" he asked, his eyes narrowing.

"Just a guy I met," was her vague answer.

"Where are you going?" the airbender wondered, feeling slightly insulted that Katara hadn't bothered to tell him that before.

"He's so handsome and funny," she continued, ignoring his previous question. "Though, I have to admit, he's somewhat of a goofball. Still, I really like him."

Aang didn't say anything.

"He's from the south too," Katara went on, deriving some amusement from the young Avatar's sudden jealousy. "I've always liked people from the South."

"Yeah, because they're amazing," Aang muttered, rolling his eyes and thinking of Haru, Jet and other people they had met from the southern Earth Kingdom that Katara had fallen for and momentarily forgetting that he was from the south too. "So how long are you going to be gone?"

"Maybe I should have worn a different dress," Katara muttered, ignoring him and gazing down at her outfit. "Maybe this is too fancy. But then again, he might like it."

Aang sighed, wondering if he had done something wrong that had prompted Katara to go on a date with someone else. He had been busy of late, but Katara hadn't mentioned being lonely or anything and he didn't think he was neglecting her either. But still, he was sure he must have done something wrong, because Katara was going out to dinner with a complete stranger when he would have been more than happy to take her out himself.

A knock on the front door drew him out of his thoughts and Aang waited for Katara to make a move to answer the door, but she ran back to her room, muttering something about her hair and surprises, and Aang shuffled to answer the door. He imagined that her date would be a tall, young man who was probably much better suited for her than he was, but he received the surprise of a lifetime when he found Sokka standing on their doorstep. The last time he had seen the lanky warrior had been five months ago at the South Pole for his engagement party, just before he and Katara had left for Ba Sing Se and Sokka and Suki had left for Kyoshi Island.

"Sokka? What on earth are you doing here?"

The warrior smiled. "I was on my way to Kyoshi again and I thought I'd drop by. Besides, Katara and I have a date tonight."

"You're the warrior she was talking about?" Aang asked.

Sokka nodded. "Yeah, I ran into her at the market yesterday and since we hadn't seen each other, I thought we could catch up, have some brother-sister bonding time." The airbender smiled in relief and Sokka smirked. "You weren't jealous, were you?"

"Me? Of course not," he replied, laughing sheepishly. "What gave you that idea?"

Sokka just laughed. "Oh, nothing. By the way, you'll be done soon here, right? You and Katara have to be back in the South Pole by the end of next month or Suki says she's hauling the two of you down there herself."

Aang chuckled. "Relax, Sokka. We won't miss your wedding."

"Good, you better not," the warrior said as Katara came to greet him.

"I see you two met," she laughed. "I told you my date was a goofball, Aang."

Sokka frowned and muttered something incoherent while the airbender chuckled. "Yeah."

"See you later," Sokka said as Katara stepped out.

Have fun, Katara." The airbender said, sincerely.

"Are you going to stay inside for the rest of the day?" Katara wondered.

"I don't want to, but I should to finish reading that stuff Zuko sent me."

"You should take a walk or something," Katara suggested. "Don't work too hard." She gave him a quick kiss and followed her brother towards the restaurant. Aang watched them leave before deciding to follow Katara's advice and take a walk before going back to the arduous task of reading all those proposals. Within five minutes, he had left the house behind him and was wandering the streets of the Ba Sing Se. The streets were milling with people, from respectable businessmen to beggars, and it seemed like half the city was out. There were all sorts of things to do and see that Aang was so busy taking everything in he didn't notice someone come up to him until she was right in front of him.

"Kuzon," She exclaimed, her amber eyes twinkling.

Aang blinked. "I'm sorry. You must have me mixed up with someone else."

She laughed. "You're so funny, Kuzon. Or should I say, Avatar Aang? Don't tell me you don't remember me."

Aang just blinked at her but then gaped when realization dawned on him. "On Ji?"

She laughed and enveloped him in a hug. "I'm glad to see you still remember me."

"How did you know who I was?"

"I'd know those eyes anywhere," she said. "And I knew the moment you left our school all those years ago you weren't who you said to be. Plus, I saw wanted posters of you, and that girl, and your monkey…I mean lemur. And I saw your sky bison as he left the cave the night of the dance."

"Oh."

"So, how have you been?" she wondered.

"Uh, good." Aang replied.

On Ji grinned. "I want a full report of what you've done since you left our school. I was on my way to eat dinner by myself. We should..."

"I…um… already have a…uh… girlfriend," Aang stammered, somewhat confused as to why On Ji was asking him to dinner.

"Relax," she giggled. "I'm engaged, silly; my fiancé works here. And everyone knows about you and Master Katara. I was just going to say you should join me since I was alone." Before Aang could respond, On Ji took his hand and led him to a fancy restaurant nearby so fast, the he didn't even have time to look at the name. They were given seating right away and their orders were taken and within minutes On Ji was demanding Aang fill her in on what had happened. At first, Aang felt slightly uncomfortable being there with On Ji because he was nervous Katara might catch him, but they were just catching up, so he didn't think the waterbender would be too upset if she spotted them. The chances of her catching him were somewhat slim, he guessed, since there were many restaurants in Ba Sing Se and Katara and Sokka could be at any of them. What he didn't know, however, was that in another section in the very same restaurant, hidden from his view by an elaborate screen and bamboo plants, Katara and Sokka were eagerly catching up.

* * *

"So," Sokka asked, while they waited for their food to arrive. "Has it really been five months since we saw each other?"

"Five months and eleven days," Katara replied, smiling. "But who's counting?"

Sokka sighed, smiling. "I missed you. It was weird not having you around to wake me up or yell at me or waterbend me all over the place. I was kind of used to all that."

"Aang and I will be back in the South Pole soon, though," Katara pointed out. "By the time we're back, you'll be wishing I wasn't there."

"We'll see," Sokka responded as their food arrived.

"How is everyone?" Katara wondered.

"Good," Sokka replied. "Dad and Gran Gran really miss you. Pakku keeps complaining about how he needs an assistant to help him with his waterbending class and he wanted me to tell you to toughen Aang up. He's drafting the two of you the second you get down there and he says he can't have Aang giving in to all the students."

Katara giggled. "Somehow, I don't think he will."

"Bato also says hi. He and Dad have been working on some projects to make a new watchtower, so I might get one after all."

"But what'll you do with it?" the waterbender demanded.

Her brother shrugged. "I don't know but I'll figure something out."

"How's Suki?"

"She's been really busy lately," Sokka admitted, as their food arrived and the waiter smiled as they thanked him. "Apparently, there are seventeen new recruits for training and she and Ty Lee were really busy for a while."

"Is she coming to the South Pole any time soon?"

"Well considering that we're getting married in a few months, what do you think?"

Katara laughed. "Oh, right. Sorry."

"So," Sokka wondered, popping a piece of meat in his mouth and savoring the taste. "Has Aang asked you yet?"

Katara's spoon fell from her hand into her soup and the others in their section looked up the sound of clanking china was audible. The waterbender bended the liquid off of her dress and the table and looked up at her brother. "What do you mean?" she demanded, blushing.

"Has Aang given you a necklace?"

"Yeah, he's given me jewelry."

Sokka just groaned. "A betrothal necklace, Katara. Has Aang given you one and asked you to marry him yet?"

"Oh," his sister replied, her face flushed. "He hasn't. Not yet." Sokka wasn't sure, but the thought he detected some desperation in her voice.

"You think he will?"

She shrugged. "I want him to, but I don't know. I'd say yes even if he gave me a rock."

Sokka chuckled. "Don't worry; he probably has a necklace for you."

"But I've never seen him working on it or seen any of the materials for it."

"He probably hides the material and keeps the necklace with him. When I made one for Suki, it was always in my pocket because I was afraid she would find it."

"You really think he made one?" Katara wondered.

"Probably," Sokka offered, moving onto his dessert. "But if it's any consolation, Dad got a letter from him and was really excited about something, so he was probably asking for Dad's approval and advice on how to make one."

"But what if he doesn't ask?" his sister wondered.

"Calm down, Katara. He's only been in love with you since he met you," Sokka said, trying to scoop up his dessert. "You shouldn't worry so much."

"But Sokka, what if he…?" Katara trailed off as she noticed someone oddly familiar walk past their table.

"Katara?" Sokka asked, noticing she was distracted.

"I'll be right back," she promised, getting up.

"Where are you going?" Sokka demanded, following her. "Katara?"

But the waterbender motioned for him to be silent and peered out over the adjacent section from behind the separating screen. She was surprised to find Aang in the very same restaurant with another young woman. They were having an animated conversation about something neither sibling could catch. Sokka didn't think much of it and turned back to go to their table when he heard Katara gasp. He whirled around and followed his sister's gaze but nothing could have prepared either of them for what they saw.

* * *

_Thanks for reading and as always, thanks for all the reviews I've gotten so far. I promise I won't take forever with the next chapter, so if this is (somehow) suspenseful (which it probably isn't considering my lame skills at creating suspense), I won't keep you all waiting long. ^^_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	70. Surprises: Part II

_I don't really know how, but I managed to finish working on this and post it long before I thought I would :D. But my brain is mush after so much studying (-_-), so I apologize in advance for an mistakes, etc. Still, I hope the condition of my brain didn't make this chapter any worse than my other ones ^^. Happy Readings!_

_Disclaimer: I own nothing :(_

* * *

**LXX. Surprises: Part II**

_Anyone can catch your eye, but it takes someone special to catch your heart._

~ Unknown

Sitting at the table with a black-haired beauty, the young Avatar had looked completely peaceful and didn't notice either of the Water Tribe siblings standing some distance away. The young woman looked like she was asking him something and, grinning a little, he pulled a necklace out of his pocket and gave it to the girl. She took it and beamed before throwing her arms around him and kissing his cheek. Sokka shot a sideways glance at his sister, but she seemed frozen in place, too shocked to do anything. But like lightning, Katara turned around and had left the restaurant in tears and Sokka had hurriedly paid for their meal and followed her as she hurried home.

* * *

It hurt so much. Katara had felt hurt before, but nothing like this; it was sharp and unimaginably painful. Nothing, not even the pain she felt after her mother died, compared to this. This was a different type of pain altogether. She felt like her heart had been ripped out and a knife had been driven through it. It was even more painful because Aang had never given her a single reason to doubt him. She'd never felt like he'd do anything like this before. She knew there was a chance it wasn't at all what it looked like, but her logic seemed to fail her now and she couldn't think of anything other reason why the airbender would give another girl a necklace.

"Maybe this is all just a misunderstanding," Sokka suggested, though he didn't quite believe it himself.

"I doubt it," Katara replied, angrily scrubbing at a few tears that managed to fall. "You didn't see his smile when she took it."

"I still can't believe that Aang would do something like that. I thought he was different."

"I thought so too," Katara replied, laughing darkly. "But I guess I was wrong."

"That two-timing jerk. Wait till I get my hands on him," Sokka fumed. "I'll…"

"What?" Katara snapped. "What could you possibly do to fix any of this?"

Sokka shrugged. "I'll figure something out."

"Don't waste your time," she said, sniffing and wiping away a few more tears. "It won't make a difference."

"Katara," her brother began but Katara cut him off.

"Don't bother, Sokka."

"Why not?"

"After Mom died, I asked Dad once when the pain stops. He said never because a wounded heart never truly heals."

"It could if you let it," Sokka suggested quietly. "Maybe, somehow, there are guys better than Aang out there."

"No," the waterbender replied, letting the tears fall this time. "There aren't and it isn't that easy."

When Aang returned to the house, he was in a cheerful mood until he saw Sokka glaring at something.

"Hey, Aang. How was your evening?"

The airbender didn't hear the edge to the warrior's voice and smiled. "Good. How was yours?"

"Great, until you decided to break my sister's heart."

Aang gave him a confused look. "_What?_"

"Katara and I saw you with that girl at the restaurant today. We saw you give her that necklace and…"

"You mean this necklace?" Aang asked, pulling it out of his pocket for Sokka to see.

"Yeah, that's the…wait, I thought you gave it to that girl," Sokka said. Aang was about to explain, but Sokka interrupted. "Is that the Water Tribe symbol?"

Aang nodded.

"You mean you were going to give it to Katara?"

Aang nodded again.

"But you…" Sokka sighed. "Didn't you ask that girl at the restaurant to…you know…?"

"What? No," the airbender cried. "Why would I do that? It's not even finished."

Sokka shrugged. "I don't know. I just thought that maybe you didn't want to tell Katara that you moved on or something. I figured maybe you meant for her to see it so she'd believe it."

"I wouldn't do that," Aang replied, frowning.

"I just thought you might."

"Thanks, Sokka. I'm glad that after all this time, you think I'd hurt her like that."

Sokka just glanced out the window. "It was an honest mistake," he cried. Aang just shook his head. "Okay, so maybe it wasn't because there wasn't any basis for it, but still. It looked pretty convincing."

Aang didn't say anything and Sokka just let the silence hang between them like a barrier.

"She's hurt," he said at last after a few seconds had elapsed. "You should go see her."

"I'm probably the last person she wants to see," Aang muttered, frowning at the warrior.

"Yeah, but you're also the only one who can fix this."

Aang sighed. "I know," he said, walking to Katara's room.

"Aang?" Sokka called.

The airbender turned to face him.

"For the record, I'm glad this was just a misunderstanding and that I don't have to beat you up."

Aang just gave him a small smile and knocked on Katara's closed door.

"Go away," came her muffled response but Aang just opened the door anyway and stepped inside. Katara was sitting on her bed and staring out the window but she glared at Aang when he entered.

"What do you want?" she demanded.

"I just wanted to…" he began, but Katara didn't give him a chance to finish. She was on her feet in an instant and was standing before him in two strides.

"Did you think that just because I'm not like other girls, I wouldn't have feelings?" she snapped.

"What? No."

"Or did you think it was okay to just pretend like you cared and loved me because you're the Avatar?"

"Katara…"

"Because…," she faltered and tried steeling herself, but it was too much effort to be angry at him when all she wanted to do was kiss him and beg for him not leave her and choose that other girl over her. "I never pretended like I cared. I really did. I still do."

Without warning, he pulled her into a hug and Katara broke. The tears she had been fighting off came and she didn't bother wiping them away. She'd spent the better part of the evening trying to convince herself that there was someone better than Aang out there and that maybe she didn't really love him the way she thought she did. But the harder she tried, the more desperately she wanted Aang for herself. She was being selfish and she knew it, but she didn't care. She'd always been told that in love, one must sacrifice their feelings if they were unrequited because sacrifice was as much a part of love as anything else, but she'd sacrificed enough to know that letting Aang go would break her. She wasn't even sure if she had it in her to accept that Aang hadn't really cared for her the way she cared for him. She'd tried all evening, but now that she was in his arms, her resolve had instantly slipped away.

"Katara, I don't know what crazy idea you came up with or what Sokka told you, but whatever it is, it isn't true," he said, earnestly.

Katara pulled away from him and stared at him in disbelief. "But I saw you give that girl the necklace and I know I didn't imagine her kissing you."

He rolled his eyes. "That girl was On Ji. I ran into her while I was out this evening and she said I looked familiar so I told her who I really was and then she demanded that I fill her in on everything since we last met. It was her idea to eat the restaurant, anyway. So, I told her everything that happened and then she told me everything that happened to her after we had last met."

"So you didn't ask her to marry you?"

"Why would I do that when I love you?" he demanded. "You're the only girl I'd ever ask. Besides, On Ji's already engaged. She's here in the city because her fiancé works here."

"But you gave her a necklace," Katara protested.

"No, I didn't," Aang denied. "We were talking about her fiancé when she asked me if I had someone special I was going to ask and I told her about you and how I made a necklace and everything. She asked me to show it to her and I did. She thought it was romantic," he explained, rolling his eyes. "And she was so excited that she…"

"But you looked so happy."

"She thought the necklace was the nicest one she'd seen and she said she thought the girl I gave it to would be proud to have it. Of course I was happy."

"So you didn't give her a necklace?"

"Even if I had what difference would it have made? Making betrothal necklaces is a Water Tribe custom, isn't it? As far as I know, people from the Fire Nation don't make them."

Katara was shocked to discover he was right. She'd been so caught up in believing Aang was proposing to another girl that she hadn't even realized that. But still, even if she had realized that, it wouldn't have made much of a difference because he would have given it to someone who wasn't her.

"But you still gave her the necklace, didn't you?"

Aang pulled it out of his pocket and handed it to her. "It's not done, but it was always meant for you."

She ran her fingers over the engravings of the Water Tribe symbol melded into that of the Air Nomads on a beautiful glasslike blue pendant. "It's beautiful," she said, handing it back to him.

"Why are you giving it back to me?" the airbender wondered, somewhat surprised.

"You're not going to want to give it to a girl who overreacted and doubted you when she had no reason to."

"I wasn't planning on giving it to anyone else and we all overreact, so it's no big deal. If it wasn't already obvious, I was kind of jealous of your date until I found out he was Sokka. I really thought I did something wrong."

"You did?"

He nodded. "Well, yeah. The way you kept talking about your date, I figured I must have. Actually, I kind of told On Ji that. She thought the whole necklace idea was brilliant but I thought maybe you wouldn't want it because I did something wrong."

"Why would you think that?"

"You never told me your date was Sokka. I thought you had actually found someone better."

"I find it hard to believe there's someone better than you out there," she said, tracing the engravings of the necklace that was still in her hand. Suddenly, she looked up at him. "Can I wear it?"

"It yours, so why are you asking me?"

"If you don't want me to wear it…" she began. "People might assume…"

"What?"

She blushed. "That we're engaged when we're not."

"Not _yet_," he corrected, blushing with her. "But the necklace you're wearing isn't even finished. I wanted it to be perfect, so I made one just for practice. The real one is much nicer."

"You didn't have to make another one. This one is perfect."

"Not really, but you can keep it and wear it if you want, regardless of what you say when I ask."

"I think I will," she said, putting it on. "This way, I know you'll give me the real one and ask because you know I'll say yes." He laughed. "And this way, we can avoid all those stupid misunderstandings, because everyone will know I'm yours."

Aang made a face. "You make it sound like I own you, like you're a servant or something."

She chuckled, wiping away a few lingering tears. "I'm not the submissive type. You should know that. But you do realize that is the whole point of making a betrothal necklace, right? The idea is that whoever wears it is promised to someone and no one else is supposed to ask or attempt to take her."

"I know, but you should know that if you say yes, it's not a lifelong commitment. If you're not happy, you can leave anytime you want."

"I won't leave," she said, smiling. "I wouldn't be able to. After I saw you give On Ji the necklace, I guess my insecurities got the better of me and I really believed you were asking her. I spent all evening trying to convince myself that maybe there was someone better than you out there for me, but the truth is, there isn't anyone who even comes close to being as amazing as you are. And despite trying all evening to let go and move on, I couldn't. If I couldn't do it now, do you really think I'll be able to do it later?"

He shrugged. "I don't know, but I'm sorry if I made it seem like I was asking On Ji. And I'm sorry for being jealous of you and Sokka."

She waved her hand dismissively. "It's okay. The whole Sokka date thing was my fault anyway. I should have told you it was just Sokka, but I didn't know you'd get jealous. I thought you'd know I wouldn't actually have dinner with someone unless it was a really good friend or something."

"I guess I should've assumed that, but I didn't."

"It's okay. Next time, I'll tell you if I have a date," she said, smiling.

A week later, however, they were in a similar situation. Katara was running around the house asking Aang if he had seen another dress of hers for another special occasion.

"I can't find the stupid dress anywhere," she groaned.

"What do you need it for this time?" Aang wondered.

"I have a date," she replied, smiling and he felt jealousy dig her little claws just a little deeper in his heart. Katara had neglected to tell him that.

"Who's the guy this time?" he muttered, rolling his eyes.

"Oh, he's from the south," Katara said. "I met him a while ago."

"Do I know him?"

"You might."

"Let me guess: tall, dark, and handsome?"

"Two out of the three."

"Which two?"

"Does it matter?"

Yes, he wanted to say, but he kept his mouth shut and silently berated himself for not asking the waterbender out earlier. Katara just went to get ready and returned a short while later.

"How do I look?" she asked. She was dressed in a simple blue dress that framed her figure beautifully and her hair was done in a simple yet elegant style. She looked stunning, but all Aang could do was gape.

"That bad?"

"No, you look amazing. I'm sure your date will be happy to have you by his side."

"I hope so," she said, softly. "I really want him to be happy."

Aang just sighed, wondering what Katara saw in her date and wishing he was the one going with her. He was sure he would have made better company; after all, no one knew her better than he did. But he didn't tell her that.

"I hope you have a good time," he said, trying to sound sincere but not really meaning it. He knew he should have made an effort to try being nicer, but he couldn't for some reason. "Have fun, Katara." He sighed and shuffled off in the direction of his room to try and find something to fill his rather empty evening.

"Aang, where are you going?" she cried.

"I have…stuff to do," he responded, listlessly.

"No, you don't," she said. "I am not going to end up dateless at some stupid restaurant."

"What are you talking about? What about your date?"

"It's you, airhead," she laughed. "I thought that was obvious."

"But you said your date was from the south."

"You are from the Southern Air Temple, aren't you? Or have you just been lying to me the whole time?"

"But I thought you said he was tall, dark, and handsome?"

"I said he was two out of the three," she pointed out. "You're not dark."

Aang was speechless.

"Did you really think I was going to go on a date with someone else?" she demanded. Aang just nodded and Katara laughed. "Well, it wouldn't look good for an engaged girl to be going on a date with someone other than her fiancé, would it?"

For the first time, Aang noticed she was wearing the necklace he had made. It looked stunning on her and he couldn't help feeling glad.

"But, Katara," he said. "I haven't even asked you or given you the real necklace yet."

"True," she consented, her eyes twinkling mischievously as she laughed. "But no one else knows that. So, are you coming or not?"

Aang just grinned. Suddenly, his evening wasn't so empty anymore.

* * *

_Thank you to everyone who read and reviewed. You're all wonderful. I'm still working on other requests while simultaneously trying to write out some of my own ideas, so I apologize to those who sent me requests ages ago that I haven't posted yet. I promise to post them ASAP, so thank you for being so amazingly patient and understanding ^.^_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	71. The Other Side

_This isn't really a holiday themed oneshot, but I thought I'd post it anyway. I know I have several requests to work on from PandaLily22, Emmeline4theoceans, Sam1247, and Sylvanna and I promise I'll get around to posting them ASAP :). And I was planning on posting something for Christmas, but there's a slight chance I might not be able to, so just in case I don't, I'm posting this ^^. I think the idea may have been done by other authors, but I'm not really sure, so I apologize if this is super similar to anyone else's work. Still, I hope it's not too bad. Enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar. :(_

* * *

**LXXI. The Other Side**

_In true love the smallest distance is too great, and the greatest distance can be bridged._

~ Hans Nouwens

The smell of blood and burnt flesh was nauseating. It lingered, heavy and thick in the air like the stench of rotting corpses. Katara desperately wanted to run away for fresh air and Toph had to hold her breath from gagging. She didn't know how the others weren't affected by the smell, but she supposed they had more important things to worry about. At the moment, they weren't faring too well. A normal rebellion usually would have ended by now. Then again, in a normal rebellion the assailants usually didn't know them all well enough to be able to injure almost all of them. At the moment, her feet were burning painfully and her vision was distorted. She knew she should have been more careful and taken care of that firebender who she had disarmed a short while earlier, but she hadn't. Sokka's arm was injured and Katara was running back and forth between all the injured troops with Suki close behind to help heal them. That left just Aang and Zuko to fight with those who weren't injured. But even for accomplished fighters such as the two of them, it wasn't easy to hold the rebels at bay when so many people from both sides were being injured. It wasn't too long before Zuko and Aang joined the injured and the rebellion fell apart as their leader lay wounded before them.

Mai was at Katara's side in an instant, frantically tugging at her arm and going on about Zuko's injury and begging for Katara to heal it. But the waterbender wasn't focusing on anything other than Aang.

She was by his side in an instant, though it seemed like he was miles away and that it had taken her forever to reach him. He was alive, but bleeding profusely and she didn't know if she had enough water left to heal him. But she tried all the same despite the young airbender's protests. She used every last drop she could draw out from her water skin and the instant they were home she managed to use more. But for all her healing, the young Avatar didn't seem to be getting any better. And yet, she went on healing him because this situation was nightmarishly familiar and she didn't have it in her to entertain the same thoughts that had crept into her mind after their failure at Ba Sing Se.

"Hang on, Aang. I'm almost done," she whispered. The bleeding had stopped and his ragged breathing had evened out, but Katara wasn't completely sure if she had healed him. The airbender just smiled and pulled away from her touch.

"It's okay, Katara," he said softly, leaning back. "You should get some rest."

"I can't," she replied. "Not until I know you'll be okay. How do you feel?"

He smiled and closed his eyes. "I'm okay," he lied. Honestly, though, he was weak and beyond tired and his side hurt painfully. He felt like he could close his eyes and sleep forever. He wondered vaguely if this was what death felt like.

"You're lying," Katara said, her voice shaking and her eyes glazed over with tears. "You're not okay."

He didn't respond.

"Aang," she sobbed, throwing her arms around him and burying her face in his shoulder. "Don't you dare leave me."

"I'm sorry, Katara," he murmured, wrapping his arms around her as she cried harder. "If it was up to me, I wouldn't. But it's not."

"I know," she acquiesced, her voice muffled. "But it's still not fair. You promised we'd be together forever." She might have kicked herself for saying something that seemed to come out of a tragic romance play that she had read or watched, but she was too hurt to care at this point.

"We will be," he promised, managing a small smile. "Even if I do…you know, die, I'll always be with you."

"It's not the same," she replied, hollowly.

"Please don't cry," he begged. He couldn't stand to see her so hurt and broken, especially when he knew that he was the cause of all her pain. It didn't help that neither of them could fix any of this either. But try as she might, Katara couldn't stop the tears from cascading down her face.

Aang suddenly pulled away from her, a remarkable feat considering how weak he was and how tightly Katara was holding on to him, and gently wiped away her tears. "I wish you'd smile," he said, throwing caution to the wind.

Katara just blinked. "You want me to smile when you're on the verge of death?" she asked, incredulously.

He nodded, laughing though it hurt, because he if he had to go, he wanted to die remembering her beautiful, enchanting smile. He told her as much. "If I have to die, the last thing I want to see is your smile."

"Aang," she faltered, her heart nearly breaking in two. "I…"

Without warning, he kissed her. For a split second, Katara thought that her heart had stopped beating and that perhaps her mind didn't have enough oxygen to allow her to think clearly, because she was somewhat dazed when Aang pulled away. She frowned. If that was supposed to be her last kiss, how was she to remember anything if she was in a daze? It was only then she noticed Aang frowning too.

"Is something wrong?" she wondered.

"They say kisses are supposed to bring smiles. Obviously, it doesn't work."

In spite of herself, Katara laughed. "There might be some truth in that." But she became somber once again. "They also say the last kiss is supposed to be the sweetest. I'm not so sure about that."

"Maybe because it wasn't your last kiss," Aang suggested, airily "You'll get more from other guys."

"I don't want any from other guys," she muttered. "And you're an idiot if you think I'd let them get that close to me."

He chuckled. "You say that now, but if I die, you'll think differently."

"Don't say that. You're not going to die. You can't."

"I wish I couldn't, but I don't know. If I do, will you…?"

"Don't ask me to move on and find someone else. It isn't that easy and it doesn't work like that."

"That's not what I was going to say," Aang replied. "And what do you mean it isn't easy and it doesn't work like that?"

Katara met his gaze. "I can't just fall in love with a random guy. Even if I get to know him and he turns out to be a sweet guy…"

"Like Momo?" Aang teased, laughing in spite of the pain.

Katara managed a small smile. "Like you. Even then, I can't just fall in love with him."

"You don't have to fall in love to be happy. As long as you're happy…"

"I am happy, airhead," she replied, smiling. "You make me happy."

"Just promise me you won't mope."

"I have every right to mope," she retorted, somewhat surprised she was still levelheaded since the situation warranted something like hysterics.

"No, you don't because there are amazing people worth living for and still you'd still have your whole life ahead of you," Aang said. "So no moping allowed."

"So if I died, you wouldn't mope?" Katara wondered.

"I'd be sad and maybe I'd mope a little, but not forever. You wouldn't want me to, would you?"

"No, I wouldn't."

"Exactly, and I wouldn't want you to either, so no moping for me."

"No promises, but I'll try not to. So what were you going to say anyway?"

"I was going to ask if you'd be okay. It's a stupid question, but…"

"Do you want the honest answer or one that will make you feel better, because honestly, I don't know if I will ever be okay if you die," she admitted, recklessly. "I still haven't really gotten over losing my mom. It's hard losing people you love and broken hearts don't heal easily. Sometimes, they don't heal at all. Sometimes they break, miraculously get put back together by the most amazing person, and then slowly break again. I should know because you fixed it and you're breaking it now."

"I wish you hadn't told me that," he muttered. "I'm sorry."

"Don't feel bad. It's not your fault. I guess my heart has always been a little weak like that, so it's easily broken. I guess _I__'__ve_ always been like that."

"It's a lot stronger than you give it credit for and so are you."

"I don't know, Aang. I'm not sure if I can be, not after losing my mom and you."

"I know you can, Katara. And for the record, you haven't lost me yet," he said, yawning tiredly.

"But I will, eventually. If not now, then in the future."

"No you won't. A person is never truly lost until they are completely forgotten," he murmured, yawning. And as he drifted off to sleep, Katara couldn't help but wonder if this would be the last time she'd ever see his laughter lit gray eyes sparkle for her.

When Aang awoke again, it was to the sound of someone speaking to him.

"Haven't you been here often enough, Avatar Aang?" someone asked as a familiar laugh rang out.

Aang blinked and sat up, rubbing his eyes only to find he was in a strange place he had never seen before. "Katara?" he mumbled, wondering where _here_ was and why Katara was calling him Avatar Aang.

She laughed and knelt beside him. "You must have hit your head hard if you're mixing me up for my beautiful daughter."

"You're her mother," he exclaimed as his vision cleared. "Kya."

She nodded. "And you are in the spirit world," she said, simply.

"Am I dead?"

"I don't know. Do you feel dead?"

"I don't know."

Kya chuckled. "Then let's assume you're not. I prefer it that way."

Aang just smiled, but the Water Tribe woman sensed something was troubling him.

"You're wondering why I'm here, right?"

"I guess," Aang returned. "Usually, if I'm in the spirit world at all, I don't meet anyone other than past Avatars and some spirits."

"Well, then this shouldn't be too unusual, because I am a spirit," Kya pointed out. "But you're probably wondering why out of all the possible spirits to keep you company, you got stuck with a boring old Water Tribe woman, right?"

"I don't think you're boring," Aang offered politely, feeling somewhat bold. "But I am wondering why you are here."

Kya laughed and Aang realized her laugh and smile were exactly like Katara's. "The answer for that is simple. I'm here because Katara asked me to be here."

"Katara?"

Kya nodded. "She asked me to watch over all her friends, but you in particular. I have to admit, when she first asked, I didn't think you'd amount to much at all, but you sure proved me wrong."

Aang smiled. "Thank you. I'm sorry if you didn't want to watch over me or if it was too much trouble."

Kya smiled. "I'd have done it regardless of whether or not my daughter asked. Somehow, Aang, I thought you knew about families. Your people were quite respecting of them, weren't they?" Aang nodded, not really sure why Kya was talking about families. "It's no trouble to a mother to look after her family and you, Aang, are part of our family."

"But I don't deserve…" the airbender began, modestly.

"Family is a funny thing," Kya said. "You don't really earn them; you just sort of have them. So consider yourself, drafted, young man. You're part of the family whether you like it or not."

"Do you happen to know why I'm here?" Aang asked.

Kya shrugged. "I don't know any more than you do. Perhaps your injuries have finally caught up with you or maybe it's something else. But while you're here I need to thank you before I forget. You've helped my family in more ways than one."

"But I didn't do anything," Aang said.

"You saved the world. Doesn't that count? And more importantly, you gave my family hope, just by being alive."

"But I should really be thanking you and Kanna for that, because Katara says you were always the one to tell her about the Avatar and…"

"Because we always believed you would come back. And you did. The world was scarred after so many years of fighting, but you helped heal it. And more importantly, you helped heal my Katara, so for that I'm thanking you."

Aang gave her a small smile. "Do you ever miss being human?" He wondered.

"You ask because don't think you're going to live for much longer, do you?" Kya asked and the airbender nodded wondering how she acquired the uncanny ability to almost read his thoughts. "I think you will, but, to answer your question, sometimes I do. When I see how much Sokka and Katara have changed, how much they've grown up, I can't help but wish I had been there to watch them. Or sometimes, I wish I could have been there for Hakoda. But I've watched over all of them ever since I left and I'm so proud of all of them."

"They all miss you very much."

"I know and I miss them. But I don't regret what I did. If I could go back in time, I wouldn't change anything because a mother's duty, first and foremost, is to protect her family. And it's not so bad, because one day, hopefully a long time from now, we'll all be here. But until then, I'll watch over them, like I always have."

"I'm sorry," Aang apologized. "If I hadn't run away, then maybe you wouldn't be here."

"You don't know that and no one is blaming you for my death, Aang," Kya said, gently. "So please don't feel responsible."

"But I feel bad," he explained. "Sometimes I think maybe I could have prevented all this and then Katara wouldn't have gotten hurt."

"No," the Water Tribe woman said, sagely. "I don't think you could have." She smiled. "You love her don't you?"

Aang looked surprised and Kya's laugh rang out. "You think I wouldn't know? I know my daughter, Aang, and I know you because I've been watching over you, so don't deny it."

"Is it that obvious?"

Kya's blue eyes sparkled. "Yes and from the look of it, she loves you too."

"If we could trade places, would you?" Aang asked, suddenly.

"You mean if I could live and you'd stay here in my stead?" Kya wondered, gazing at him thoughtfully. "No, I wouldn't."

"But Katara would be happy."

"Are you so sure?"

"Well…"

"You assume that having me back will make her happy again, but have you thought about what will happen when she loses you?"

"No," Aang admitted. "I never did."

"Even if it were possible for me to live again, I don't think I'd want to take your place. Katara would be devastated if she lost you. And I think the whole world would be rather upset you traded your life to bring me back."

Aang was about to object, but he noticed a hazy, indistinct form hovering behind Kya. The form wavered and morphed until Avatar Roku was standing before them.

"It's good to see you again, Aang," the former Avatar said. "Though I wish it was under different circumstances."

Aang sighed, assuming Roku meant he was stuck in the spirit world for good.

"Aang…"

"Roku, can I ask you something?"

"What is it?"

"If Kya can watch over me and protect me like she protected Sokka and Katara, then can I do the same for Katara?"

Roku sighed. "Aang, you can't…"

"Please, Roku," the airbender begged. "I owe her that much, after everything she's done to help me. She's always watched out for me. I just want to do the same for her."

"Calm down, Aang," Roku admonished, chuckling. "You're not dead, so don't act like you'll never see your waterbender again. I came to tell you that you're okay; your waterbender did most of the healing. You were only here for the Avatar spirit to heal."

"But I wasn't in the Avatar state when I was injured," Aang pointed out.

"True, but the spirit can still be damaged a bit. But it was nothing serious and you're all better now, so stop wasting time and hurry back to your friends. We'll meet again." And just like that, Roku disappeared.

"I guess this is goodbye then," Kya said, smiling at the young Avatar. "It was a pleasure talking to you, Avatar Aang, but don't let me see you here again anytime soon."

"No promises," the airbender laughed. "But thank you for everything."

"Don't mention it. Just promise me you'll take care of Katara. She's strong, but she's still so young and she needs you as much as you need her."

"I promise," Aang said as his surroundings slowly started to fade.

"Oh, and Aang?"

The airbender turned to face Kya one last time and her eyes were twinkling. "If Katara isn't wearing a new necklace by the end of the year, I'll have Avatar Roku drag you here so we can have a nice long talk, understood?"

"Yes ma'am," he laughed, as the spirit world faded away taking Kya with it.

He awoke in his physical form to someone gently shaking him awake and he blinked.

"Kya?" he murmured.

"Katara," the waterbender corrected. "Did you just call me Kya? And what happened? Your tattoos were glowing."

"I was in the spirit world. Avatar Roku said it was so the Avatar sprit could heal a bit. But I'm all better now, thanks to you. You healed me."

Katara smiled and for the first time Aang noticed how tired she looked. Her eyes were red from crying and she looked as if she had desperately been fighting off sleep. And it was easy to tell she had been worrying about him the entire time he had been gone.

"You should get some rest," he said, gently.

"But I want to know what happened," she said, despite the huge yawn that interrupted her.

Aang smiled. "I'm not going to leave anytime soon so I'll tell you later. It's kind of a long story."

"I don't mind," she replied, resting her head on his shoulder as her eyes closed. But she was asleep in a minute. The airbender smiled. She looked so peaceful all of a sudden and he was tempted to kiss her, but he didn't want to wake her up. So he just sat there with Katara sleeping against him and went over everything that had happened. He had really wanted to tell her about his conversation with Kya, but he didn't have the heart to wake her up when she was looked so comfortable and content. It would just have to wait until morning.

* * *

_I'm not really sure if anything like this could happen, but a girl can dream, can't she? I'm assuming the spirit world is big, so it'd make sense for Aang to meet other spirits besides past Avatars. And I've always wondered what it would be like if Aang met Kya, but I don't think I did this topic any justice. Oh, and the whole thing with the Avatar spirit needing to be healed after a fight may or may not be true; I don't really know. But I'd imagine bending all the elements in a fight would be taxing on any Avatar regardless of whether or not they were in the Avatar state. In any case, I needed an excuse for Aang to be in the spirit world to meet Kya, so that was my excuse. Kind of lame, but whatever. Anyways, thank you all so much for reading and thanks for all the reviews I've gotten so far. You're all wonderful. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! :)_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	72. A Bundle of Joy

_A/N: I know this is long overdue and I know I'm horribly behind on requests, so I'm really sorry for those who have sent me requests that I haven't posted yet. I know I've been apologizing for weeks now, but I promise to post them as soon as possible. Thanks for being so patient! ^^ This holiday season was a little more hectic than I thought it would be, which was why I didn't post a oneshot on Christmas (I'll probably post it later though since it's not really holiday themed). Still, I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas/holiday :). All credit for this chapter goes to PandaLily22 (thanks for the idea and sorry for the super long wait ^^). I hope it's okay. Enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything :( _

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**LXXII. A Bundle of Joy**

_"Life starts out as partly destiny and partly free will, but then you have kids, and it's all destiny."  
_  
~ Robert Brault

Aang loved fall in the Southern Air Temple. He loved how the leaves of the trees changed colors, how the wind seemed through whistle as it blew through the sanctuary and how everything seemed so crisp and clean. He loved meditating in the early morning light and loved watching the sun rise and stain the sky in brilliant colors before watching the sun push past the horizon. But most of all, he loved staying there with Katara. There was almost something surreal about finally being with her. He'd dreamt about it ever since he had met her, but now that they were actually together- married, he reminded himself, grinning- it felt strangely surreal. Nothing much had really changed between them except their relationship status, or whatever it was, he realized. They'd just gone from being a couple to husband and wife.

He still remembered their wedding day nearly a year ago. He didn't know who had been more nervous: Sokka, who was worried something would go wrong or Suki who kept fussing over every little detail, though it probably had something to do with the strange man who was always foaming at the mouth who had nearly ruined her wedding on Kyoshi. Oddly enough, he and Katara had been completely calm. He'd have thought he'd be somewhat nervous as this was an important day, but contrary to his expectations, he was remarkably calm. And everything went off well, which was an added bonus.

They had come to the Southern Air Temple a month or so after their wedding and since then, the time had passed by quickly. There was always some meeting to attend to or someplace to fix. It had been an eventful year to say the least, so Aang was glad to finally be back home and spend time with Katara. Even though they went everywhere together, it still felt good to relax and not really worry about time constraints and other such things.

At the moment, the airbender wasn't really doing much of anything. The weather was far too nice to spend indoors going over proposals or fixing the temple, so he had wandered outside to just watch the clouds float past. He wouldn't have minded company, but Katara claimed she wanted to finish cooking dinner before she did anything else. So Aang just sat on the roof of one of the many towers of the temple and watched the clouds move slowly overhead. The sun was a giant red ball of flames that was just beginning to slip past the horizon and the sky was slowly changing colors. A cool wind was whistling through the eaves and above the temple, Appa was roaming the skies in pursuit of Momo. Lately, the airbender noticed, the two had been spending more time together in the skies. Over a hundred years ago, the sky bison and lemurs numbered in the hundreds so that all the Air Temples looked as if they had a cloud hovering above them but Appa and Momo hardly produced that effect. Still, Aang was glad that the two were enjoying their free time.

Thinking about Appa and Momo made him think about the airbenders and Aang suddenly wished he wasn't the last of his kind. He knew there was a very slim chance any airbenders were left because they'd have revealed their presence after the war had ended, but he still wished there were. It seemed hard to believe that Ozai's ancestors had killed every single airbender but him, but there was no other explanation as to how he was the last of his kind. He'd have probably spent more time pondering the sad fate of his people, but Katara's presence suddenly drew him out of his gloomy thoughts and he airbent himself down so he was beside her making her jump when he appeared out of nowhere.

"I swear, you'll kill me one of these days if you keep that up," she teased as she took a seat on the stone ledge that formed the balustrade of the balcony.

"Sorry," he laughed. "Old habits die hard."

"What were you doing?" Katara wondered.

"Thinking," Aang replied. "And watching the sun set."

The waterbender turned her gaze to the setting sun and smiled. "Beautiful, isn't it?"

"You or the sunset?" Aang teased. "Because there are some things even the beauty of nature can't compete with."

"You're just saying that," she retorted, playfully sticking her tongue out at him as he shook his head. They both burst out laughing, but became silent when they noticed Appa and Momo in some sort of argument.

"Those two are like babies sometimes," Aang said, shaking his head and Katara's eyes widened.

"Babies," she repeated, blushing. "I…guess so."

"Sometimes, I think even babies are less work than Appa and Momo after they've gotten into a fight over something."

Katara blushed. "Y-you think so?" She stammered.

Aang chuckled. "Well, I've never actually raised a baby, so I wouldn't know but it seems like a baby would be less work than the two of them combined."

"O-oh," she said, not really sure why she was suddenly very nervous and stammering.

"Are you okay?" Aang asked, shooting a sideways glance at her. "You look…"

"I'm fine," she said, perhaps a little too hastily because the airbender looked concerned. She reached up and nervously tucked a few loose strands of her hair behind her ear. Aang didn't look convinced, but he didn't press her on the matter.

"So, what were you thinking about?" Katara wondered, hastily changing the subject.

"The other airbenders," Aang admitted.

"Oh. You must miss them."

He nodded. "Yeah, but it's not so bad. Being here, I mean. I thought it might feel awkward living in a place where everyone was killed, but oddly enough, it still feels like home even though I ran away."

Katara gave a small smile. "I'm glad you're okay staying here. I know it must be hard since the other airbenders are gone."

Aang shrugged. "It's not as bad as it was when I first returned, during the war. But I do miss them, especially Monk Gyatso. And, honestly, I don't really enjoy being the last of my kind. A lot of people think it's neat that I'm the only airbender around, but it's kind of irritating when everyone just wants to see one airbending move after another."

"I can imagine," his wife said, chuckling. "But I can relate. I'm the last waterbender of my tribe too, remember?" He nodded. "And if you don't like thinking of yourself as the last of your kind, how about thinking of yourself as the first airbender to be the last…if that makes any sense?"

"Barely," Aang laughed. "But that's one way of looking at it."

Katara just turned her gaze back to the sunset. "Maybe you might not be the last airbender for long," she said, suggestively. Aang just gave her a puzzled look but he didn't ask what she meant and she didn't elaborate so he just continued to watch the evening slip into night. The breeze was getting a little stronger, and even though Aang wasn't looking at Katara, he could hear it rustle the fabric of her robes. And for the first time, he noticed she was wearing a new dress. It was a little looser than her normal garments and the design was slightly different, but it was still the same signature blue that brought out her eyes.

"I like your new dress," he said.

"What are you…? Oh," she said, her eyes widening in sudden realization. She looked down and blushed. "Thanks." She was about to say something, but a loud groan echoed above them. It seemed as if Momo had elected to take a nap and Appa was trying to coax him into flying the skies.

"Sometimes," Aang said, watching the lemur chirp irritably at his companion. "I wish I was Appa or Momo. They eat, play, and sleep. They have nothing to worry about; I swear they're like babies."

Katara turned crimson and fidgeted beside him. Her hands were resting in her lap, but every now and then, she'd bring one up to tuck loose strands of her hair back in place. She looked somewhat flustered, but Aang didn't want to push her to tell him what was wrong. He knew she'd tell him eventually.

"You think we'll make good parents?" she asked softly, her gaze never leaving the horizon. She was nervously chewing on her nails but her other hand was resting lightly by her abdomen.

Aang raised an eyebrow. "Why do you ask?"

Her gaze flickered from the horizon to him and back again. "Just wondering," she murmured.

"I know you will, but I honestly have no idea if I will. I'd like to think so and I hope I will, but…" He stopped when he noticed Katara distracted and wasn't really paying attention. She was gazing thoughtfully at the horizon, her mind occupied by other matters. Though the sunset was reflected in her eyes, Aang knew she wasn't really taking anything in. She looked ill at ease, though the airbender hadn't the faintest idea why.

"Katara, are you sure you're okay? You look tense and nervous."

She gave a shaky laugh. "Is it that obvious?"

Aang nodded, smiling a little. "Maybe only because I know you so well. What's wrong?"

"Wrong? Well, nothing's wrong, really. I just…I'm just really happy and nervous at the same time."

"I'm glad you're happy, but why are you nervous?"

"It's complicated," she sighed, chewing on her lip.

"Oh."

She released a shaky breath and her gaze drifted from the horizon to her hands lying idly on her lap. They suddenly seemed much more interesting, because Aang noticed she was rather preoccupied with them. He desperately wished she'd open up like she normally did, but he didn't want to make her any more uncomfortable than she already was, so he averted his gaze back to the sunset. The sun was just a faint red line now and in a short while, the multihued twilight would fade into night. Neither of them made a move to return indoors, so Aang just kept his gaze on the sky, hoping the waterbender would feel better. She seemed to have relaxed the tiniest bit beside him, but it wasn't much of an improvement.

"Aang?"

He turned to look at her. "Yeah?"

Her gaze never left her lap. "I'm having a baby," Katara said, blushing. She was smiling softly, but he could detect the tiniest waver in her voice.

"You're what?" he echoed, dumbly. He wasn't sure he had registered it right. It seemed too good to be true.

"I…um…we're having a baby," she repeated quietly, meeting his gaze. "You might not be the last airbender after all."

Aang was sure he was grinning like a lunatic, but he was too happy to care. "Katara, that's wonderful," he exclaimed, pulling her into a hug and kissing her soundly. When he pulled away, Katara could have sworn his eyes were sparkling brighter than gems or snow caught in the sunlight. He looked incredibly happy and she smiled to herself. She loved knowing she could please him so easily.

She smiled, sighing in relief. "I'm glad you didn't faint like Sokka did when Suki told him about their kid."

Aang grinned. "I'm still trying to wrap my head around it. It seems so surreal. I'm… we're going to be…"

"Parents?" She supplied, grinning. "I know."

"So why were you nervous, then?"

"I just don't want anything bad to happen," she admitted. "And I hope it's an airbender, but there's no guarantee…"

"Nothing bad will happen," he assured her. "And honestly, I could care less what type of bender the baby is, as long as it's healthy."

Katara looked surprised. "Really?" She asked, leaning against him.

"Really. As long as you and the baby are okay, nothing else matters."

Katara shifted in his arms "But what if she is an airbender?"

"Then, I'd probably be the happiest father on the planet. And what makes you so sure the baby's a girl?" Aang asked.

Katara giggled. "I don't know. Something just tells me it's a girl."

"Well, does that _something_ tell you how much I love you?"

"I think I have a good idea," she smiled, giving him a chaste kiss as their intertwined hands rested gently on her abdomen. She didn't know for sure whether their child would be a boy or a girl, or even if it would be an airbender or a waterbender or not a bender at all. But she was positive that, no matter what, their little bundle of joy was their greatest gift ever and that their little family would be perfect in every way possible.

* * *

_Thanks for reading and thanks for all the reviews I've gotten so far. You're all wonderful! :)_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	73. Moonlight Serenade

_A/N: I know this is kind of late, but since I began this collection a year ago, I thought I should post something just for the heck of it and also since I probably won't be posting until after New Year's ^^. It's been a crazy, eventful year (in a good way), and I hope the coming year will be just as fun and crazy! As always, a very special thank you to everyone who read, reviewed, and supported this story (and also to evryone who submitted requests!) You're all amazing! :D Have a happy and safe New Year's. ^.^_

_~ Cassidy Alice_

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything_

* * *

**LXXIII. Moonlight Serenade**

_Love has no desire but to fulfill itself. To melt and be like a running brook that sings its melody to the night. To wake at dawn with a winged heart and give thanks for another day of loving. _

~Kahlil Gibran

From her vantage point atop Sokka's newly rebuilt and redesigned watchtower in the Southern Water Tribe, Katara could see everything. The tower rose high above the tribe and was equipped with several rooms. Since the Southern Water Tribe's reconstruction, the tower had become something of a hideout for Katara. Sokka hardly used it and whenever he was there, he usually had food and Suki with him. Toph had flatly refused to set foot within a hundred feet of the tower and Sokka had temporarily restricted Zuko from entering whenever he was there because he didn't want the firebender setting his precious tower (which he was hardly in, the young Firelord noted) on fire. So more often than not, the tower was empty unless Katara was in it. Lately, she had been spending all her time there. Often times, she'd bring a book to read or some work and do it in the tower which afforded a stunning view of the newly rebuilt city that stretched out before them and the ocean. But at the moment, she was just sitting in front of the hearth with an open book lying on her lap. She had been reading until the commotion from outside caught her attention. In the village, most of the mothers were busy running to and fro making last minute preparations for the celebration that had started some time ago. Since the winter holidays had arrived, there had been countless celebrations and Katara couldn't remember seeing such a whirlwind of activity. But she was glad that the villagers were enjoying themselves because during the war, there were very few, if any celebrations. It was such a refreshing change to see everyone happy and cheerful again instead of anxious and worried. The only thing that could have made the moment better, she decided, was the presence of a certain airbender. Unfortunately, she hadn't seen Aang since she had left the house that morning and she knew he probably wasn't there now. She had already seen Sokka and Suki disappear into the multitude of people milling in the village center and she was positive Toph was doing something back in her room at home. She wondered if there was any way to bring Toph to the celebration, but she decided against it. Getting the blind earthbender to the South Pole had been challenging enough; asking her to attend the festivities was probably pushing her luck, Katara reasoned. Still, she wished there was some way Toph could enjoy the holidays without being cooped up in their house and she was left pondering this thought until the sound of music reached her ears. It was a familiar tune, one Katara recognized quite well and she had a pretty good idea where it was coming from. Abandoning her place in front of the hearth and all thoughts of Toph (and her book) forgotten, the waterbender made her way to the balcony and peered out. Below, a certain airbender was playing a melodious song on the flute and patiently waiting for her to say something.

Katara just raised an eyebrow inquiringly. "Aang, what are you doing?"

He grinned. "What does it look like?"

She laughed, resting her elbows on the balustrade and gazing down at him. "Are you trying to serenade me?"

"Is it working?"

She looked thoughtful. "That depends."

"Don't make me sing, Katara. I can't so I'm not even going to try."

"Then give me one good reason why I should come down," she teased.

"Because there's a celebration and you really shouldn't be all by yourself inside when everyone is having fun," he replied. "And good company makes celebrations so much more fun."

"And you couldn't find some other lonely girl to take?"

"There's a serious lack of lonely girls at the moment," Aang replied, grinning. Katara just laughed and hurried inside, grabbing her parka and slipping into it as she made her way down to meet Aang.

Outside, the atmosphere was completely different. There was so much energy and noise, Katara almost asked Aang if they could retreat back to the watchtower where it was quiet and warm and celebrate there instead, but considering everyone was out and about, Katara decided to follow their example and the two roamed about the newly rebuilt tribe, socializing with various people. There were quite a few people Katara had never met before, but she learned that some of were relatives who lived in the Earth Kingdom and Fire Nation venturing to the South Pole for the first time and some were waterbenders from the Northern Water Tribe. She saw a handful of young children milling about and they all waved and greeted the pair with a polite "hello Avatar Aang and Sifu Katara" before wishing them the best for the holiday season and running off. Somewhere in the distance, an orchestra was playing a lively tune and they could hear faint traces of laughter as couples danced underneath the moonlight that was occasionally obscured by clouds floating past. Everyone seemed so relaxed and happy that Katara thought she could stay like that forever. But there was so much to see and do, she hardly had a second to bask in the moment. Without really knowing how, they found themselves on the outskirts of the city, close enough to hear all the music and the laughter, but far enough that there was little chance of them being spotted by the others.

"It's a beautiful night," Katara said, gazing up at the sky where silvery clouds illuminated by the moon and laden with snow were collecting. A sliver of moonlight shone through a small hole directly onto a patch of the ocean whose waves were lapping softly against the frozen shore.

"Yeah, it is," Aang agreed. "But it looks like it might snow, so we should probably make the most of the night before it starts."

"As long as we don't have to go back and join the crowd, I don't mind what we do. So…um… what should we do?" The waterbender asked, gazing at him.

He shrugged. "I don't know. Do you want to dance?"

Katara looked down at her parka and then back at Aang. "These are hardly the clothes to dance in, Aang. I'll look like a dancing sack. And I'm not even wearing a nice dress."

"You won't look like a dancing sack," he laughed. "And you look beautiful in anything."

"If you say so," she replied, smiling and taking his hand as the orchestra struck up another tune.

Katara didn't know how long they danced or how long the orchestra continued playing because they struck up song after song, but she and Aang didn't pause until the fireworks lit up the night sky. They remained silent until the fireworks had ended and instantly the noise within the city walls picked up again.

"So, now what?" Aang wondered. Katara, however, wasn't really paying attention. Her gaze was fixed on the nearly invisible horizon and she didn't answer him until he gently nudged her.

"What? Oh, I'm sorry. I guess I was just thinking," she said, smiling at him.

"About what?"

"We've come a long way since we left to help you," she replied. "It's hard to believe how things turned out."

"Yeah, but I'm not complaining," Aang said, following her gaze. "I'm just glad people don't see me as failure."

"They'd never see you as a failure," Katara reassured him.

"Thanks."

Katara nodded, but suddenly gasped in surprise. "I almost forgot," she said, hurriedly taking Aang's hand and dragging him towards the ocean. "There's something I've been meaning to show you."

"What is it?" the airbender asked as they hopped from iceberg to iceberg.

"Sokka actually showed it to me. He said he was fishing out here one day and he saw a couple come out here."

"Why way out here? There's nothing but ice and…" He stopped midsentence and gazed in surprise at the massive iceberg towering over him, glowing in an eerie blue-black light. In all this time, nothing had changed. "Is that…?"

Katara nodded. "I don't really know how Sokka found it, but it's the same iceberg you were in. It's still here."

Aang just stared at it in awe and ran his hands over the surface, surprised to find something carved into the ice. "What's this?" he asked, retracing it. "It looks like a name."

"It is," Katara replied, laughing cheerfully. "Some of the villagers in the tribe remembered that this is where we met, so they've carved their names into the iceberg. It's kind of silly, but they think they'll find true love."

"Just because we met here?" Aang echoed.

"Yeah," she answered, blushing softly. "Sokka said he heard from some of the couples in the village that those who carve their names on the outside are waiting for true love and those who've carved it on the inside have already found it."

"There's more on the inside?"

"Yeah."

Katara ducked under a small opening and led him to the inside. The circular walls were covered in names of people from as far away as the Fire Nation.

Aang let out a low whistle. "Wow. This is unbelievable."

"I'll tell you what's unbelievable," Katara cried, in sudden indignation. "Sokka's carved his name next to Suki's and he told me no one would ever catch him doing something like that."

Aang chuckled. "Maybe he thought we wouldn't come."

"I don't know," Katara admitted. "But sometimes, I wish Sokka would just own up; he really can be sweet when he wants to."

Aang laughed. "And corny. You forgot corny."

"I guess I did," Katara laughed, scanning the other names etched into the ice. "But this seems strange, doesn't it? You've given people hope in some of the strangest ways."

"I guess so," Aang returned. "I never thought I could give people hope for finding true love. It seems so weird."

"Hey, have you noticed our names aren't here?"

"No, I didn't."

"I think they should be. Kind of sentimental, right?"

"No," Aang replied, creating a tiny, sharp icicle. "It's not."

"What are you doing?" Katara demanded, noticing the airbender was glancing thoughtfully at the giant, frozen structure.

"We shouldn't disappoint all these people, should we?" he grinned, finding an empty space and neatly carving their names into it with a little waterbending.

"You do realize what that means, don't you?"

"Of course," he nodded, smiling at her.

"How do you even know I'm you're true love? In the future, you might realize I'm not," Katara said, tracing her name next to his.

"I don't think so," Aang replied, cheerfully. "I really don't know what will happen in the future, but I promise to always love you."

"You really shouldn't say things like that," Katara laughed, hugging him.

"Why not?"

"What if you can't keep your promise?" She wondered.

"It was an Avatar promise. No one breaks those."

"Right," she laughed. "What about the Avatar promise about not scamming?"

"In my defense, I was younger," he pointed out. "And stupider."

Katara just laughed.

"At any rate," Aang continued. "I don't think I'm capable of breaking this promise even if I tried my hardest."

Katara just hummed in agreement and turned her gaze upward to the sky. A few snowflakes were falling from silvery clouds before landing on the ground. Despite the cold weather, neither Aang nor Katara made a move to seek shelter.

"You know," the airbender said, thoughtfully. "Before the war, my friend Kuzon used to say that he'd always marry a firebender in the snow."

"Why snow?"

Aang shrugged. "I guess it doesn't snow very often in the Fire Nation so he always told me it'd snow at his wedding."

"What about you?" Katara wondered.

"I never really thought about it," he admitted. "The monks never said falling in love was wrong, but they never told us about marriage, so I never really thought much of it. But I think I'd agree with Kuzon."

"But what's so special about snow?" Katara demanded. "It's not like you've never seen it before."

"I know," he replied, airily. "But you look really pretty in the snow."

Katara tore her gaze from the sky above and gazed at the airbender, surprised. The snowflakes caught in her hair and eyelashes created a dazzling effect. "Does that mean you want to marry me?"

He nodded simply, blushing a bit as he did so.

"You mean it?" She exclaimed, happily. Her eyes were sparkling and she looked thrilled.

"Well, yeah, of course I mean…" he began, but the waterbender silenced him quite effectively with a kiss. Suddenly, the prospect of Aang breaking his promise sounded ridiculous to Katara. She knew without a doubt he meant every word he said and suddenly, her grandmother's words about destiny came back to her. Destiny, the two realized, was a funny thing, because they would never have guessed where it would lead them. But as the two stood there under the falling snow locked in a tight embrace, they knew they wouldn't have it any other way.


	74. Charades

_A/N: I know this is probably going to sound crazy, but I was working on sam1247's request the other day and MS Word literally ate part of the document or something (knowing me, I probably forgot to save it or something), so now I have to go back and rewrite part of it _:_|. So, in the meantime, I decided to post this. I'm not really sure what I was thinking when I wrote this (since I wrote it a while back), but I just hope it's okay. Enjoy! ^^_

_Disclaimer: I own nothing :(_

* * *

**LXXIV. Charades**

_Money won is twice as sweet as money earned._

~ The Color of Money

Arguments were quite common among the Avatar and his friends. With all the people staying in his house, there were bound to be a few fights. And fights between couples were also expected; sometimes Sokka's bad jokes were just a little too much for Suki or Zuko's aloofness was just a bit frustrating for Mai. But regardless of who was fighting and what they were fighting over, it was uncommon for the argument to last very long. Also uncommon, was Aang and Katara's tendency to get into a fight over something trivial, or anything for that matter. The two hardly ever fought at all, but when they did, their friends found it hilarious. Katara was easily the more histrionic and hotheaded one of the two, always jumping to conclusions and stubbornly clinging to what she believed to be right or true. Aang was always trying to appease her, but more often than not, he would just get frustrated and leave her alone after a few minutes. It was nothing new to their friends and often times, the others would make bets on how quickly the two would make up. It was never long before one would seek the other and their argument would end in what Sokka and Toph referred to as a "kissing fest." While hugs and kisses weren't always involved, Sokka and Toph's notion wasn't far off. Aang and Katara never could stay mad at each other for very long. So it was quite surprising when, one day, without warning the two burst into a fight.

Honestly, no one was quite sure how it had started. Somewhere between their morning outing and their afternoon meal, Katara and Aang had gotten into a huge argument. None of them knew what exactly the whole ordeal was over, but they all had to admit, it was somewhat surprising that they were fighting for this long. Even Toph had been prepared to stake her life on the notion that Aang and Katara would never get into a long fight because out of all the couples, they were the one least prone to getting involved in arguments. But they were fighting and that was what made it so strange. Perhaps the others shouldn't have been too surprised, because fights were all but inevitable in relationships but seeing, or in this case hearing, Aang and Katara in such a huge argument was somewhat surprising. There was also something hilarious about it, but out of politeness the others didn't laugh. In any case, they were sure the arguing couple could hear them if they all laughed because the walls of the house weren't really that thick. So while Aang and Katara argued the others sat and made bets on what would happen.

"Ten gold pieces they make up and start kissing in five minutes," Sokka said, placing his coins into a little bag on the center table. "You all know it can't last longer than that."

"They've been at it for a while," Suki pointed out. "Ever since they started working on that sculpture for Iroh's birthday present, they've been fighting."

"I thought they started when we came back from that play," Mai said, examining her knives with a rather bored expression plastered on her face.

"Whatever," Suki shrugged, adding to Sokka's pile on the table. "Ten gold pieces they keep arguing until tomorrow."

"Aang and Katara, fighting until tomorrow?" Toph chortled. "You're nuts. Twenty pieces say those two will make up any minute now." More money was added to the little bag.

"Listen," Zuko hushed. "It's quiet. Thirty gold pieces they already made up."

But the sound of raised voices was heard again and Zuko frowned.

"Whoever wins is going to be rich," Sokka laughed. "And it's going to be me, so start paying up."

The others just shook their heads and all eyes turned towards Mai, waiting for her to place forth her bet. She just ignored them and continued examining her knives for a while until she realized everyone was still watching her. Sighing, she put her daggers away and met their gazes.

"I think they're just not going to make up at all," Mai said, and several groans were heard.

"Do you even know what happiness and a positive attitude are?" Sokka asked and Mai just rolled her eyes before slouching back in her seat.

"Oh," Suki cried, suddenly grinning. "Listen, everyone. The argument is getting so much more interesting." From behind closed doors, they could hear the airbender and waterbender arguing. It seemed quite intense, because their voices had risen again and if Suki didn't know better, she would have sworn they were like two mortal enemies locked in a room fighting for the one ticket out.

"You're such an idiot, Aang," Katara cried. "I don't even know why…"

"If anyone's an idiot, it's clearly you, Katara. Only you would do something like that."

"What are they talking about?" Sokka wondered and everyone shrugged.

"Me?" Katara screeched. "I wasn't the one being a jerk."

"Neither was I," Aang shot back.

Something cracked and the others flinched, just exchanging amused yet puzzled glances.

"You can never let some things go, can you?" Katara demanded.

"Yes I can," Aang replied.

"Well, if it hadn't been for you then we wouldn't be in this mess."

"It's not my fault you can't do anything right."

"I'm sorry I can't please the great, stuck-up Avatar."

"Stuck-up? Excuse me? I am not stuck-up."

"Are too."

"Are not."

"Don't you love it when they fight?" Toph snickered. The others just grinned.

"Why can't you do anything right?" Katara demanded.

"For the same reason you can't," Aang retorted.

"Ugh, you're so infuriating, Aang."

"And so are you."

"Well, you're immature and childish."

"You're overdramatic and bossy."

"You're inconsiderate and impulsive."

"Well, you're stubborn."

"They're really going at each other, aren't they?" Sokka asked, getting a kick out of his little sister's huge argument with the young Avatar. He had gotten in enough fights with Katara as a child to know how she could be, but he'd never seen her like this.

"I'm sorry I can't be perfect, like you," Katara snapped.

"I'm sorry too. People like you could learn a thing or two," Aang said, laughing darkly.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Exactly what it sounds like."

Something like a slap was heard and Toph's eyes widened.

"Did Katara really just hit Aang?" she wondered.

"I don't know," Suki said, suddenly somewhat worried. "But this is intense. You think we should break it up?"

"And face their wrath?" Sokka cried. "No way."

"But listen to them," the Kyoshi warrior insisted, directing everyone's attention to the argument that had escalated noticeably. "They're really going at each other."

"I say we wait to see who wins this bet," Zuko said.

So they waited. Toph changed her bet and the others followed suit. More money was added to the little bag and it wasn't long before the little bag was practically bursting at the seams. But Aang and Katara were still arguing and so their friends continued making bets while listening in on the conversation. Even now, it was unclear what the two were fighting about, but it was probably something of no concern to the others.

"Maybe we should break up," they all heard Katara say. "Since I'm not good enough for you."

"Fine," Aang replied, evenly.

Nearly everyone gasped and Sokka demanded that Toph check their vibrations. The blind earthbender didn't need to be told twice.

"They're not faking it," she said, her eyes wide in surprise. "They really mean it."

"But they…" Sokka trailed off. "I always thought…"

Everyone nodded.

"I'm going to kill Aang," Sokka muttered.

"Hang on a minute," Suki said, following his thought process. "It was Katara who suggested breaking up, so you really can't blame Aang for hurting her if he didn't do anything."

"Oh yeah," Sokka said, lamely. "Forgot about that."

"So, who wins the bet?" Zuko demanded. Everyone raised their hand and the Firelord sighed. Zuko thought the money should have been his, but Toph and Sokka were already in a fierce argument about who it really belonged to. And even though none of them really needed the money, they certainly weren't about to give it up. While Mai continued polishing her daggers and made snide remarks from the side, Suki, Sokka, Zuko and Toph argued over who really won the bet. Everyone was so caught up in the argument they didn't notice that the waterbender and the airbender had stopped arguing. They were equally oblivious to the sound of a room door opening and Aang and Katara poking their heads out. The two looked somewhat surprised to see their friends in such a heated (not to mention entertaining) argument, but none of the others noticed their amused expressions. While their friends all bickered over who the money really belonged to, Aang and Katara tiptoed silently towards the front door, stopping momentarily to let Aang airbend the little bag of coins towards them. They would have made it out the front door if Sokka hadn't suddenly cried out.

"The money's gone," he exclaimed. "Give it back, Zuko."

"I don't have it," the firebender said, defensively.

"Hold on," Toph said, suddenly feeling a new set of vibrations in the room. She turned to face Aang and Katara who were standing awkwardly to the side, smiling sheepishly. "Twinkle Toes, give us the money back."

"Hi, Toph," Aang said, pulling Katara out the front door with him.

"Bye, Toph," Katara called, laughing.

"Sugar Queen!"

"What just happened?" Suki demanded.

"Aang and Katara must have stopped arguing long enough to steal the money," Toph said, smacking Sokka who looked like he was about to burst into tears. "Pull yourself together, Snoozles. We're going to find them and get my money back."

"Don't you mean _my_ money?" Zuko wondered and Toph just punched him. "Okay, I get it."

"So where'd they go?" Sokka wondered, looking outside. His sister and the Avatar were long gone and Toph was grumbling about not being able to sense their vibrations. He would have suggested some place, but Toph looked ready to kill, so he kept his mouth shut.

"I say we all stay here," Mai said. "They have to come back sometime, don't they?"

"This is Aang and Katara we're talking about," Zuko pointed out. "They…"

"Aang left Appa behind," Toph said, suddenly grinning. "He has to come back. I say we jump them when they return. Let them enjoy their argument somewhere else. The real fun begins when they come back."

Aang and Katara were enjoying something, but it wasn't quite the argument as their victory. As soon as the others found them out, they ran as fast as they could towards the woods that bordered the village, climbing the first (climbable) tree they could find, so Toph couldn't sense their vibrations. Once they had caught their breath and relaxed, Katara was the first one to speak.

"Who knew we were such good actors?"

Aang grinned. "You were amazing."

"I had better be, after all that effort I put into rehearsing it," Katara replied. "And you were incredible. You think the others bought it?"

Aang shrugged. "I don't know, but in any case, we have the money, so hopefully they'll stop making bets every time we actually get into an argument."

Katara just laughed. "I don't care if they do. This is payback; if they're going to make money off of us, I think we're entitled to make some money off of them,"

The airbender grinned. "I guess so."

"I didn't hit you toohard did I, Aang?" Katara asked, kissing his cheek.

He laughed. "No, it was a nice touch." Katara just shot him an amused look and he laughed at the unintended pun. "Sorry. I think Sokka's starting to rub off on me."

The waterbender just laughed. "It's okay," she said. But suddenly she became serious. "Aang, we are still…together, right?"

"Of course," he said, pulling her into a hug. "I didn't really mean anything I said…"

"Good," she said, smiling in relief. "Because I didn't mean anything either."

"… Even if it was true."

"Aang!"

"Kidding," he laughed. "I really didn't mean anything I said. I mean, the whole point was just to fool the others, right?"

"Right," she replied, lightly. "And it worked, so I think we deserve to celebrate for all out hard work."

"Then what are we waiting for?" the airbender demanded, bending them down. "Let's celebrate."

Katara laughed and followed Aang towards the footpath that would lead them towards the village. Perhaps one day, they'd tell all their friends how much effort they had put in to pull the stunt off. Perhaps they'd tell them how hard they'd rehearsed and practiced to make it seem like they were actually in an argument and actually mad at each other so even Toph's senses were fooled by their vibrations. But for now, a cool summer breeze was blowing, the sky was changing colors and their evening stretched free and empty before them. For now, Katara and Aang intended to enjoy their little, well earned victory.

* * *

_Thank you to everyone who read and reviewed. You're all amazing! I'm still working on those requests, so hopefully I can have one up the next time I update. Thanks for being patient! :)_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	75. Counting Blessings

_A/N: This oneshot is long overdue but for some reason, it took me forever to get this posted. All credit for this chapter goes to Sam1247. Thanks for the idea ^^ and sorry for the ridiculously long wait. I hope it's okay. Enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything. _

* * *

**LXXV. Counting Blessings**

_"A mother's heart is a patchwork of love."_

~ Unknown

"Zuko, are you okay?" Aang asked.

The young Firelord looked up at the Avatar with tired eyes. He'd been distracted of late and everyone knew he was preoccupied with something, but Mai wasn't the type to find out and tell the others, so Aang had decided to ask for himself. The Firelord was sitting at the table and he was supposed to be eating, but considering that he was holding the spoon upside down and staring out the window, it was obvious he wasn't fully awake yet.

"Yeah, I'm okay," he said, averting his gaze down and staring blankly at the plate of food in front of him. "Why do you ask?"

"Because you're holding the spoon wrong, you're not wearing any shoes, your hair is a mess, and, quite frankly, you look like you rolled out of bed."

"And your robe is inside out," Sokka added, grabbing a piece of fruit from the table and taking a large bite out of it.

Zuko sighed. "Yeah, I know. I haven't gotten much sleep lately."

"I can tell," Aang said, dryly. "What's wrong?"

"Uh…" Zuko ran a hand through his hair and sighed. He wasn't really good at explaining things and this wasn't exactly the easiest thing to talk about. It didn't help that he was completely drained and distracted, either. "Um…"

"Your eloquence is truly amazing, Your Highness," Sokka said, feigning admiration. Zuko just scowled at him.

"Does this have anything to do with Mai?" the warrior wondered. "I bet she…" He was cut off by a thin metal disk that knocked the fruit out of his hand and pinned it firmly to the opposite wall. Sokka let out something like an "eep" before glaring at Mai. She gazed back at him, expressionless.

"This has nothing to do with her," Zuko said, attempting to clean some food that had fallen on his robe. "It's actually about my mom."

At this, even Mai's curiosity was piqued and all eyes rested on the young Firelord. Zuko was silent until he noticed everyone staring at him.

"What? Why is everyone staring at me?"

"You found your mom?" Sokka asked, his blue eyes wide with surprise.

"Not exactly," he replied, unable to mask the dejection in his voice. "But her birthday is coming up soon, tomorrow actually. I feel like I should do something, but…"

"But?" Sokka prodded.

Zuko shrugged. "I don't know what to do. I mean, I don't want to get the entire city involved. I bet half the people wouldn't even care and the other half would over do it. And if I ask Uncle, he'll probably just make tea and have us drink gallons of it or something."

"Well maybe just a small celebration then," Sokka suggested. "Maybe you could throw a small party or something, you know, with just us around."

Zuko looked up at him. "You mean you guys would want to do that?"

"Well, Sokka would probably just wants to party," Toph said from her place on the settee. "But I'm sure the rest of us wouldn't mind."

Sokka just scowled at Toph.

"I'm up for it," Suki said. "I don't know much about Firelady Ursa, but it sounds like a nice thing to do."

Zuko gave her a small smile. "She wasn't the Firelady, technically. She left before my father became the Firelord, but yeah, I guess it is kind of nice."

"I think you should get the entire city involved," Katara said. "Maybe if rumors of the celebration spread, which they probably will, she'll hear about them."

Zuko just shrugged and went back to his meal. The subject wasn't brought up again until Ursa's birthday. A small celebration had taken place, though Zuko wasn't quite sure it could really pass as a celebration since most of it involved drinking Iroh's tea and having the former General and Zuko relate stories about Ursa. But Zuko wasn't mad the little celebration had taken place. It hadn't put him any closer to finding his mother, but he felt a little bit better about not doing anything for her birthday. A short while after the celebration, however, Zuko had consulted with Iroh about giving up the mission to find his mother. Ozai had been of no help whatsoever and Ursa herself hadn't turned up though it had been some time since Zuko had become the Firelord. With so much to do to restore the world, there simply wasn't enough time to look for her. Zuko felt like it would be far more practical to use the Fire Nation's troops to help in the restoration process than to look for his mother, but some part of him just couldn't come to terms with that. Of course, when he had asked Iroh for advice, his uncle had just given him an annoyingly ambiguous answer that he couldn't make sense of but was generally narrowed down to letting Zuko do what he felt was right. So Zuko had asked Aang and Sokka what they thought he should do. They had given him their opinions (also annoyingly ambiguous ones), but Sokka and Aang had suggested he talk to Katara. So he found himself standing just outside a courtyard in the palace watching the waterbender practice her bending. She hardly noticed him until she accidently knocked him down with a simple water whip.

"What are you doing?" Zuko asked, as she helped him up.

"What does it look like?" She demanded. "Waterbending."

"Oh."

"What's with you? You've been out of it all week."

"No, I'm fine."

Katara just rolled her eyes. "Right, and I'm getting married tomorrow."

The Firelord just smirked. "I thought you'd at least wait until Aang had somewhat finished his Avatar stuff."

Katara turned red and stuck her tongue out at him. "At least I'd get married. If it was up to you and Mai, the two of you would never get married, because you're too scared to ask her."

"That's not true," he countered, indignantly.

"Whatever. That's not the point. What's gotten you so distracted lately?"

"I told you," he sighed. "I was trying to do something from my mom's birthday today. And all this stuff about my mom has got me thinking."

"About what?"

"About calling off the search for her."

Katara just blinked. "Why would you do that?"

"There aren't many people who know I have soldiers looking for her. If they found out, I'm sure they'd be upset. Besides, I could use those troops to help with reconstruction projects around the world. And my mom probably doesn't even want to see me; she'd have come by now if she really did."

"Maybe something prevented her from coming," Katara said, going back to her waterbending practice. "Maybe she doesn't know you're the Firelord now."

"I think the whole world knows at this point." He sighed. "I don't even know why I'm telling you all this. Sokka and Aang actually told me to talk to you, so if you're bored out of your mind, beat them up, not me. It was their idea."

Katara's reply came in the form of drenching him in cold water and laughing as he spluttered.

"What was that for?" he demanded.

She shrugged. "You looked like you could use it. And I think I know why they told you to talk to me."

"And why is that?" Zuko asked, wringing the water out of his robes and hair. "Are you an expert on how to cope with lost mothers?"

There was a faint smile on her face. "Something like that. So, why are you really giving up on finding your mother?"

Zuko sighed, somewhat flustered. "I told you. It's impractical and there's probably a better way to use my troops and my time."

Katara just rolled her eyes. "You know what? I think you're just scared."

"Me?" Zuko repeated. "You think I'm scared to find my mother?"

"Yeah."

"I am not scared," the Firelord snapped. "I'm…"

"Afraid," the waterbender finished, meeting his gaze. Zuko just shot her a glare and Katara smirked. If there was one thing she had learned about the firebender, it was that getting him to do something sometimes was as simple as accusing him of being too scared to do the deed. Sometimes, like a child, Zuko would point out he was perfectly capable to accomplishing the task and actually accomplish it. She hoped this was one of those times.

"I'm not scared," he hissed.

"Prove it," she challenged.

"I will."

"I don't think so."

"Watch me."

"What are you going to do? Hire someone to look for your mother, because that doesn't prove anything. I bet I could find her faster."

"You don't even know what she looks like."

"Sure I do. You showed us her picture."

"You still won't find her."

"I bet you anything I would," she objected.

Zuko smirked. "You're on."

Katara just grinned and went back to waterbending. "Then I guess my work here is done."

"What are you…?" Zuko began, but then he groaned, realizing what he had just signed himself up for. "I should really stop spending so much time with you guys."

"Hey, you were the one that asked for my opinion. I think you shouldn't give up the search, but clearly you don't. And if you weren't going to listen to me anyway, I had to do something to make you continue searching."

"So you were going to make a bet and not stick to it?" he replied.

"No, I was actually going to try as long as you tried. And on the off chance I found her first, I'd have pretended I didn't and given you hints to find her."

"Why? You'd have lost the bet."

Katara just smacked him with another water whip. "Firelord or not, you're an idiot sometimes, Zuko. She's your mother; the bet was just to make sure you kept looking for her. I really don't see why you care how others would react if they knew you had people searching for her. It shouldn't matter. And she's not going to hate you after all this time if she sacrificed everything for you."

"Yeah? Well, that was a long time ago. Things have changed."

"Nothing has changed. A mother's love goes a long way. I should know."

"Sorry," Zuko said, knowing Katara was referring to her mother.

"Look, I can't bring my mother back, but you can. There's still a chance she could be alive and well, so why are you wasting your time debating whether or not you should find her? No mother who gave up everything to protect her son would hate him after seeing him again in years. And if you're so concerned about people's reactions, send your troops elsewhere and Sokka and I will take their places. Even Aang, Toph, and Suki would be willing. I don't think Mai would object either. I don't think we'll find them as quickly as you could've with your troops, but there's no harm in trying."

"No, probably not," Zuko replied, sighing. "I really don't know why I even thought I should call off the search." He suddenly smirked. "But that bet is still on, right?"

Katara laughed. "Sure. Try not to be disappointed when I win."

"I don't think you will," the Firelord laughed. "I think I'll find her first."

"I hope so," the waterbender said, as he walked inside. Sokka was sitting at the table trying to pry something from Momo's hand but he stopped when he noticed Zuko entering.

"I'm guessing Katara convinced you to keep looking for your mom?" he said, grinning.

"You knew?"

Sokka laughed. "Of course I knew. Why do you think Aang and I told you to talk to her? Girls have this weird ability to convince guys to do things, Katara especially. She can convince people to do almost anything."

"Well it worked, even though she tricked me and I made a bet with her like a stupid three year old."

"Honestly, I think it's a good thing you're not giving up. After everything that's happened, I feel like the universe owes all of us, so maybe it'll repay you by leading you to your mom"

"Maybe," Zuko mused. "But why are you and Katara so interested in helping me?"

Sokka shrugged, waving away Momo's offering of some fruit. "I guess it's because we can relate. I don't know about Katara, but honestly, I've kind of been jealous of you because you can look for your mom. Our mom is dead; she can't come back. At least you can look for your mom."

"But…"

"I know, I know. There's a small chance she could have died too, but Ozai himself told you she was banished and from what you've told us about her, she seems like a strong woman, so I don't think she's dead." Zuko just nodded. "And that's another thing I envy about you."

"What?" Zuko demanded, puzzled.

"That you can remember everything about your mom so clearly. I know you were older than I was when I lost my mom, but still. I was nine when she died and losing her was really hard on everyone in my family."

"I'm sorry," he said, softly.

Sokka just nodded. "I haven't told this to anyone but Toph, but I can't remember my mom that clearly anymore. Every time I try to picture her, all I see is Katara, because for the longest time, Katara was the one taking care of me. She was the one that really held our family together. Listening to you and Iroh talk about your mom…it just made me sort of envious that you could remember so much about her and I couldn't remember much about my mom."

"Oh," was all Zuko could manage. He wasn't really sure what to tell his friend, but thankfully, Sokka continued.

"Look, I know you asked us what you think you should do and I know I said you should do whatever you feel like doing, but personally, I wouldn't listen to my advice. If I were you, I'd keep looking no matter what. There's a chance you might not like what you find, but I think it's worth taking. You're actually very lucky."

"I am?" Zuko asked, surprised.

Sokka nodded, a faint smile playing on his lips. "Yeah. At least you know why your mom left and you know that she loved you. Think about all the other people in the world who lost their mother. Some of them probably don't even know who their mother is or if she even cared about them. Some probably don't know why or how they lost their mother."

"I guess so," the Firelord replied, thoughtfully. "I never thought about that. I guess I am lucky, then."

Perhaps, as Sokka had said, Zuko was really more fortunate than others in the world. Zuko himself was beginning to believe that, especially after mulling things over. True, there was a slim chance he would not like what he found, but as Sokka had said, there was no harm in taking that chance. There was a possibility that Ursa had died, but that was the worst that could happen; Zuko couldn't imagine anything worse befalling her after she had already been privy to the knowledge that her son was to be killed. Then again, there was also the possibility that she could be alive and well. And really, how could he pass up an opportunity to see his mother again? Even though he ran the risk of being disappointed, it was a risk he was willing to take. Ursa had done everything to protect him and Zuko intended to do everything he could to find her and make up for it.

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_Thanks for reading! I'm still working on requests, so hopefully I can have them up soon. As always, thanks for all the reviews I've gotten so far. You're all wonderful! _:)

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	76. Simple Pleasures

_A/N: As of late, I'm horribly behind on requests, but I've been busy these past few days, so I haven't really gotten around to working on the requests I have. But I did manage to find some completed oneshots I'd never posted and so I thought I'd post one while I'm working on the requests, Hope it's alright. Enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar :(_

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**LXXVI. Simple Pleasures**

_"Why not seize pleasure at once?"_

~ _Emma_, Jane Austen

It was too difficult, Aang decided, tuning out the incessant chattering of some official whose name he had long ago forgotten and gazing out the window. Five hours ago, paying attention might have seemed plausible, but now it was out of the question. He didn't even remember why he and Zuko were there. Something about achieving world peace and stability. Or had it been about determining the fates of the Fire Nation colonies? He really couldn't recall the reason and at the moment, he found he had no desire to try and remember. All he knew was that he wanted to go home. His back hurt from sitting so long in the uncomfortable chair and it was rather warm indoors. It certainly didn't help that the officials decided to deck the entire table, a rather long one that seated at least forty people, with candles and anything else that could be lit to produce light. So he had been forced to endure the all too warm and stuffy chamber with its uncomfortable chairs and listen to the officials discuss something he couldn't understand. In his opinion, the meeting was a waste of time because there were far too many people gathered in that one room and the table was so large and long, he could barely see which official was speaking at the moment. It had to be one of the ones sitting furthest from him, he reasoned, because all the others were looking in that general direction, away from him. The ones sitting closest to him were also dozing off. Aang had spent the better part of the evening trying not to fall asleep, but these gatherings were just so boring, he couldn't help it sometimes. It was becoming increasingly difficult to stay up at these meetings, no matter where they were held and what time they took place.

A sudden kick brought the airbender's attention back to the meeting and his gaze flickered from the scenery outside to the young Firelord sitting directly across from him. Zuko looked uncomfortable and distressed and Aang just quirked an eyebrow inquiringly at the firebender. He motioned to his left with his eyes and Aang had to stifle a laugh. The elderly official next to Zuko had fallen asleep on his shoulder. He was snoring and drooling slightly and Zuko kept making faces and trying to awaken him, but the official wouldn't budge. Zuko shot a desperate glance at Aang and the airbender shrugged to say he had no idea what to do. Zuko's response was just a skeptical look and Aang racked his brains for a solution, a _polite_ and helpful one. He'd woken Sokka up all too often on their journey around the world before the war ended, but the official was not Sokka and tricking him into thinking his meat was burning or that there was a snake on him would most likely not work and would probably not turn out well. Even earthbending the official out of his chair wouldn't work. Aang didn't even know if he could earthbend in the chamber and in any case, he supposed it would draw too much attention to him and he could imagine the official wouldn't be too pleased. So he just shot Zuko an apologetic glance, causing the firebender to groan and awkwardly try to push the sleeping official away as said official just snored on contentedly. Zuko just glared at him and Aang was sure if looks could kill he'd be nothing more than a heap of smoldering ashes by now. Honestly, the airbender didn't really see what the problem was. Zuko could have just woken the official up because, technically he couldn't get mad at Zuko; he was the Firelord after all. There was no law against falling asleep on the Firelord, but it simply wasn't done. Still, Aang just summoned a gentle wind current and blasted it at the man, hoping it would wake him up and Zuko would stop shooting him angry glares. The official woke with a start, babbled something incomprehensible to his monarch (all while turning a fine shade of scarlet that nearly matched that of his robes), straightened up, and turned his attention back to the meeting.

That had been the highlight of the meeting for Aang and Zuko. After that, they somehow managed to make it through the rest of the evening followed by dinner and then dessert. By the time the two parted ways, it was late and Aang had never been more thankful to be out, even if it was rather chilly outside. Whistling cheerfully to himself, he made his way home, not entirely surprised to find that no one was up inside. Sokka and Suki had probably gone out like they did every day and he couldn't even imagine what Katara had done. But knowing the waterbender, he supposed she had probably worked until she was too tired to stand; it was just her nature sometimes.

He found he was partially right. When he entered the unlit house, he found the waterbender fast asleep in the settee in front of the hearth. Aang wasn't sure, but he guessed she had fallen asleep waiting for him to return. The book she had been reading had fallen to the floor and lay upside down, its pages bent underneath and Aang set it back in its place before attempting to wake Katara up. But she must have either been very tired or in a deep sleep because nothing he did woke her up. So he did the only other thing that came to mind; he picked her up and took her back to her room. He could have sworn he heard her mumble his name and he hoped Sokka or Suki didn't find him at that moment. He didn't want anyone to get the wrong idea. Thankfully, neither of them did and he made it to Katara's room without being seen. He was about to set her down when he realized she had curled one of her hands around the fabric of his robes and he suddenly had no idea what to do.

"Katara, let go," he pleaded in a whisper, but if anything, the waterbender only held on tighter and nestled deeper into him. Something like a contented sigh escaped her lips and she relaxed noticeably. Gently, he tried prying her fingers off, but her grip didn't loosen in the slightest. If anything, her grip tightened as if she was afraid he'd slip away during the night. Aang just set her down and draped her blanket over her. Katara still hadn't let go and it seemed like she had no intention of doing so. If the situation had been different, Aang would have found it comical but he was deathly afraid of Sokka catching him in Katara's room. But Katara wouldn't let go of him and he hadn't the faintest idea what to do, so he just curled up next to her hoping sometime between now and morning, she'd let go and that he could sneak back to his room. But the waterbender just pressed herself closer to him until he could practically feel her silky hair brushing against him and until he could see the tiny smile that worked its way across her face. Honestly, Aang had no idea why he was so nervous; they were engaged after all. He and Katara had been in closer proximity before; they'd shared a sleeping bag at her insistence more than once when they had been travelling after the war. Then again, most of their travelling had been done after Sokka had gone to Kyoshi to visit Suki, so he had never known. He was sure if Sokka found him now, he'd be skinned alive, even though Sokka knew they had shared a room before. But every room they had shared in the past had two beds. This was the first time he and Katara had actually been in the same bed. Aang just sighed and closed his eyes. It could have been a lot worse, he supposed. Sokka could have already walked in on them and jumped to conclusions. But there was little chance of that happening now, because his snores were clearly audible across the hall. A little voice inside him was telling him not to worry, and so Aang drifted off to sleep with that thought in mind.

* * *

Katara woke to the early morning sunlight filtering in through the windows of her room. Despite the wind whistling outside and the chilly air seeping in through the cracks, she felt incredibly warm and comfortable. Her vision was too cloudy from sleep for her to see much of anything, so she just closed her eyes and curled up under the warmth of the covers. She attempted to turn over, but suddenly found herself incapable of doing so. Shifting on her side, she opened her eyes slightly to find Aang fast asleep beside her. She hadn't remembered falling asleep next to him. Come to think of it, she hadn't even remembered falling asleep in her bed. The last thing she remembered was reading in front of the hearth as she waited for Aang to return. He must have just fallen asleep here, she reasoned. He was sleeping peacefully and at some point over the course of the night, he had wrapped his arms around her. It suddenly explained the incredible warmth and the sudden weight she felt. Katara just closed her eyes and sighed peacefully. There was some indescribable sort of feeling, some simple pleasure to waking up to a cold, crisp morning in Aang's arms. She was so warm and comfortable, she thought she could have stayed like that forever. But then something clicked. It was really Aang next to her. This wasn't like the dreams she frequently had where he would always disappear just before the dawn. His face was just inches from hers; he was really, truly there. Her eyes widened in surprise and she blushed, fidgeting slightly. Her movements must have woken him up, because the next thing she knew, his silver eyes were gazing into hers and she blinked in surprise. The simple act must have woken him up a great deal, because suddenly he looked very shocked and surprised as if he had just taken notice of his surroundings. Katara couldn't help giggling a little at the adorable expression of fear and surprise that worked its way across his face.

"I'm so sorry, Katara," the airbender began, but she just silenced him with a kiss, laughing a little at the dazed expression on his face.

"Morning," she said, softly. "How long have you been here?"

"I don't know. Since some time last night, I guess. I'm really sorry if I…"

She just smiled another brilliant smile of hers and kissed him again. "I never said I didn't like this, did I?"

He grinned.

"So why are you here?" she asked. "I can't be that interesting to watch when I'm asleep, so I'm guessing you didn't fall asleep watching me sleep."

Aang laughed softly. "Well, I kind of did. But when I came home last night, you were asleep on the couch so I brought you back here, but then you wouldn't let go, so…"

"Let go of what?" Katara asked, giving him a puzzled look and his gaze drifted down to her hand still curled around the fabric of his robes. She blushed. "Oh. Sorry."

"It's okay," he replied, noticing that her grip had loosened but that she still hadn't completely let go.

Katara just closed her eyes and sighed peacefully. "I'm so warm, I could just stay in bed all day."

"Me too," the airbender agreed. "But I don't think I can. Sokka's going to kill me if he ever finds out about this."

The waterbender just rolled her eyes. "Don't worry about that hypocrite. He's been sharing a room with Suki even before they got married, so he really can't tell us not to."

"Yeah, but he'll still kill me if he finds out."

Katara opened her eyes and smirked at him. "So does that offer of kissing me rather than dying still stand?"

"What do you think?"

"I think this won't be possible once we pick up Toph," she said ruefully, shivering a bit as the cold air seeped into the room. She was thankful Aang hadn't entirely let go of her because his embrace warded off the cold. "She'll just keep complaining about our vibrations."

"Probably," the airbender replied, chuckling. "But, if it's all the same to you, I'd rather not have Sokka catch me in here."

Katara just stifled a yawn and the two detached themselves from each other. "Good idea. We want you alive."

Sneaking back to his room would have been fairly easy for Aang, but Sokka had woken up uncharacteristically early and had spotted the airbender leaving his sister's room.

"What were you doing in Katara's room?" he demanded.

Suki just shoved past Sokka, yawning and smoothing her hair out. She answered the warrior even before Aang could come up with an excuse. "Leave him alone, Sokka. Katara's old enough to take care of herself and they're engaged anyway."

"I'm going to pretend I didn't see that," Sokka muttered, rubbing his eyes and following Suki down to the kitchen where breakfast was waiting. Aang just watched the warrior leave, wondering whether or not he should be on guard. Sokka had already tried to pull several pranks on them. Even if those had failed, the airbender didn't think it would hurt to be on guard. And he found it he was right to do so. Sometime before Aang and Katara had wandered to the kitchen to get breakfast, Sokka had hidden all of Aang's food and replaced it with meat. Suki and Katara immediately started looking for the airbender's food, but Aang just smiled to himself.

Two can play this game, he thought, watching Sokka smile in triumph. Of course, the warrior had no idea what was in store for him until he returned to the kitchen for lunch.

"Is it just me, or is it cold down here?" Sokka wondered, shivering slightly.

"It's winter, genius," his sister replied. "Even if we're not in the South Pole, you can't walk around dressed like it's summer."

Sokka just grumbled something incoherent and began rummaging through the cabinets in search of something until an all too familiar meat-like aroma wafted through the kitchen. Sokka suddenly gasped and rushed to the common room where the others were seated in front of the hearth whose flames smelled suspiciously of meat rather than burnt wood.

"Aang," he cried. "Where is my seal jerky?"

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_Thanks to everyone who read and reviewed. You're all amazing!_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	77. Miracles

_A/N: I'm going to be a bad person and kind of break a promise (please don't judge me just yet ^^). I got this request a while ago from a friend but was told not to credit her (not really sure why), but I feel bad for taking credit for something that wasn't entirely mine. Most of this was a oneshot I was writing for fun and not really planning on posting, but then I got the request and managed to work it into the oneshot, so here it is! I'm almost positive this idea has been done by other authors, so I apologize if it seems like I was copying. I wasn't doing it intentionally! :D This was somewhat challenging to write since my understanding of the subject is limited at best so I hope this is decent. Happy readings!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything._

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**LXXVII. Miracles**

_"Birth is the sudden opening of a window, through which you look out upon a stupendous prospect. For what has happened? A miracle. You have exchanged nothing for the possibility of everything."_

~ William MacNeile Dixon

"Are you all bundled up?" Kanna asked, helping Katara into her parka and fretting over her as she pulled on her mittens.

The waterbender rolled her eyes and laughed. "I'll be fine, Gran Gran. Don't worry."

"It's not you I'm worried about," Kanna teased. "It's the baby. After nearly nine months, I think you'd be somewhat cautious about taking trips."

"We'll both be fine," Katara assured her, laughing even though her back was aching and her head hurt a bit. "Aang and I aren't going very far. Actually, he won't let me go far."

"Well, at least someone is in his senses," Kanna chuckled as Sokka ran into his room to quiet his wailing three month old daughter. Kanna just watched him with an amused expression on her face. "Suki never did this."

"Suki doesn't have a flying sky bison," Katara said, continuing to get ready despite Kanna's attempts to keep her indoors. She understood why her grandmother was worried, but after being cooped up indoors for the last four months, she was dying to get out. "And the baby's not due for another two weeks. I'll be fine."

Kanna sighed and just wrapped another scarf around her granddaughter. "You're so stubborn, Katara. Can you come back in an hour?"

"Gran," the waterbender protested. "I can't…"

"You should listen to her," Suki said to her sister-in-law. "What if something happens?"

"Nothing will happen," Katara repeated. "Didn't you ever get bored sitting at home and doing nothing?"

"Yeah," Suki admitted. "But I was too scared to actually leave the house or go somewhere, remember?"

Katara nodded, smiling at the Kyoshi warrior. Suki's daughter had been born three months before, two weeks after Aang and Katara had come to stay at the South Pole. Suki and Sokka had already been there for about two months because Suki claimed she needed a change of scenery and she felt more comfortable with Kanna around to help with the delivery. In the two weeks before Suki's daughter was born, Katara often asked the warrior to come on her daily walk with her, but Suki had flatly refused and stayed indoors the whole time while wondering why Katara was even out and about in the cold in the first place. Katara had been perfectly fine staying at the Southern Air Temple, but Aang refused to let her stay there by herself since he was often busy, and especially now that she was nearing her due date. He was so worried about something happening, that they had flown to the Southern Water Tribe and stayed with her family for the last trimester of her pregnancy. Admittedly, she enjoyed having her family around, but she did find it slightly annoying that they wouldn't let her do even simple things which was why she had put her foot down and insisted on going with Aang as he took Appa for a short flight. Since coming to the Southern Water Tribe, the poor bison hadn't even taken one flight. Aang mentioned that the bison used to roam the skies freely in the Air Temples, but Appa seemed somewhat reluctant to go anywhere without Aang unless he had to, so when the airbender had said he was taking Appa for a quick flight, Katara had insisted on coming with him. Aang had protested, but Katara had pointed out that once the baby arrived, she would be indoors for much longer, so he couldn't deny her this one outing. So, reluctantly, the airbender had let her come along.

"Can we go back in a few minutes?" he begged as Kanna and Suki waved them off. In the background he could distinctly hear his niece shriek and Sokka's desperate pleas for Suki's help.

Katara shook her head. "No."

"But what about your headache and your back?"

"I feel fine," Katara lied. Truthfully, the pain in her back had gone, but her headache still lingered. Until Aang had reminded her about it, she had done a good job ignoring it, but now that she had been reminded again, it hurt. And she thought the baby had moved lower since the night before and thought she felt it kick stronger and harder but didn't tell Aang anything. "Just because I'm as big as an elephant koi fish and I waddle like a penguin sometimes doesn't mean you can keep me indoors."

"You're not as big as an elephant koi and you don't waddle like a penguin," he laughed, kissing her forehead.

"Then let's go," Katara said, taking his hand. Appa just gave a low moan and nudged Katara gently towards the house.

"See? Even Appa doesn't want to take you flying," Aang said.

"So even he's calling me fat?" Katara teased, placing her hands on her hips and giving the bison a playful glare.

"No, he's also worried. You should really be inside resting."

"I think nearly nine months of resting is more than enough," Katara said. "Let's go."

Aang helped her onto Appa feeling that this was perhaps the most foolish thing he had done. Katara, however, was just glad to be out of the house and couldn't wait to put some distance between them and the village.

"Why are we flying so low?" she wondered, once they had taken off. "And why is Appa so slow?"

Appa grunted and Aang sighed. "He won't fly any higher."

"Well, why not?"

"Because you're here and he's sensitive to your condition."

"That's sweet of you, Appa," the waterbender said, to the sky bison. "But we'll both be fine."

Appa just gave a dull roar that Katara couldn't quite interpret and continued at the same, slow pace. Katara just repositioned herself so she was more comfortable and watched the scenery around them, aware that the little child inside her was kicking again and putting the brief waves of pain down to discomfort.

"You know," she said, watching the snow covered plains of the Southern Water Tribe slip past them as Appa circled around the village which was still in sight. "The baby might be an airbender. It feels like an airbender," she muttered, as the baby's foot made contact with her abdomen again. She restrained herself from wincing.

"As long as it's healthy, I don't mind what type of bender it is," Aang replied, honestly.

"I think it wants out," she laughed as the baby kicked again. She shifted her position again so she was more comfortable. "I hope it can wait for two more weeks."

"Are you okay?" Aang asked, suddenly noticing she looked uncomfortable and a lot paler.

Katara was about to reply when a strange, indescribable sort of feeling washed over her. She felt something warm and moist seep through her parka and went rigid. Before she knew how, Appa had begun his descent towards the village.

"Aang," she said calmly, bending the liquid away and trying not to get excited and nervous. "I think the baby wants out now."

His eyes widened. "Now?" he echoed. "Are you sure?"

She nodded, laughing weakly but wincing when a sudden pain took root. "Positive."

Appa landed even though they weren't quite by the house and Aang just picked her up and gently used airbending to bring them to the ground. He set off at a brisk pace towards the house in the distance with Appa following behind them. The sky bison gave a low grunt.

"He's mocking me, isn't he?" Katara asked, laughing.

"Sort of," Aang admitted, smiling. "He must've known this would happen. Most animals are sensitive like that."

Katara didn't say anything as another wave of pain washed over her. It wasn't that bad, but it was intensifying rapidly.

"How's the pain?"

"Bearable," she admitted, closing her eyes and resting her head on his shoulder as if that would stave off the pain. But, truthfully, she wasn't sure how much longer she'd be able to stand the discomfort.

They reached the house in no time and Kanna and Suki leapt to their feet the moment Aang walked in with Katara in his arms. Sokka nearly choked on his food and had to down several gulps of water to keep from coughing.

"Katara…?" he squeaked, noticing her hand resting over her swollen abdomen.

"Please don't say I told you so," the waterbender begged, laughing weakly to Suki and Kanna and giving her brother the best reassuring smile she could.

"Are you…?" Suki began, but the waterbender just nodded and gritted her teeth as, another contraction claimed her. Kanna just shook her head and wordlessly left to get things ready as Aang took her to their room.

"You're awfully calm," Katara noted as he gently set her down in the bed and helped her out of her parka.

"No sense in both of us freaking out, right?" He smiled, gently tucking a loose strand of her hair behind her ear. She gave him a small smile before curling up on her side and releasing a shuddering breath.

"Katara, try not to kill Aang in the process," Sokka joked, coming to stand beside his sister. "You'll be too tired to heal him after this."

She laughed weakly, giving him another small smile without opening her eyes. She remembered her niece's birth quite well. She didn't know who had been in more pain: Suki who was actually having the baby or Sokka whose circulation was being cut off by Suki's grip. His hand had been slightly bruised afterwards and Katara remembered having to heal it. She wasn't so sure she'd have any energy left after their child was born. She was already feeling tired, though it could have been due to everything happening in such a short time period.

"It's far too early for anything to happen," Kanna said, entering the room with Suki close behind. "You should get some rest, Katara."

The waterbender nodded, already half asleep. "Rest sounds nice," she murmured, drifting off to sleep. Kanna just smiled and draped an extra blanket over her granddaughter while enlisting Suki's help with other preparations.

She awoke a couple of hours later to Kanna gently shaking her awake.

"I brought you a snack," the elderly woman said. "You haven't eaten anything since breakfast."

Katara just shook her head. "I don't feel like eating. Where's Aang?" she asked, frantically looking around for the airbender who was nowhere in sight.

"He and Suki have been helping me ever since you fell asleep. I'm not as young as I was, so it's a lot harder to prepare than it used to be."

Almost immediately, the pain set in, and Katara shuddered. Her pained expression had her grandmother calling for the airbender. But when Aang entered the room, he was followed by Hakoda and Sokka.

"Is something wrong?" Hakoda asked worriedly and Katara just sighed contentedly as she felt Aang wrap his arms around her.

Kanna shook her head. "Nothing's wrong; she's fine." Hakoda smiled, thankful that he had listened to his instincts and not gone on the hunting expedition with Bato and a few others.

"The pain's worse," Katara admitted, trying to ignore the discomfort.

"You're doing a lot better than most women," Kanna chuckled. "Usually they're in hysterics at this point and the pain makes them a little scared."

"Yeah," Sokka added. "Suki was convinced she wasn't going to make it."

"I won't let myself die," she said, resolutely. "I know we grew up without a mother, but I won't let my baby do the same."

"You're strong, Katara," Hakoda said. "You're just like your mother; I have no doubt you'll do just fine."

She wanted to respond, to tell her father how much his presence meant to her, but another wave of pain rendered her incapable of doing anything but clutching Aang's hand in a viselike grip and biting her lip to keep from crying out. Hakoda and Sokka were instantly waved off by Kanna, who gently placed a cool cloth on Katara's forehead.

"You really should eat," her grandmother said, gently. "You'll need your strength and energy for later."

Katara gingerly sat up, wincing in pain and obeyed. For the next few hours she ate, walked, talked, slept a little more, awoke again, and walked a little more. But it wasn't easy and she and Aang never made it far before she was seized with pain and paralyzed. By the time Kanna came to check on them again, Katara was back on the bed, curled up against Aang and demanding he distract her.

"Still lucid, I see," Kanna said, smiling.

"I don't think I will be for much longer," Katara managed as her body erupted in pain for the millionth time. Aang felt her entire frame tremble and gently kissed her forehead.

"Yes you will," he assured her. "You're doing great."

"I feel awful."

"I know, but it'll be over soon."

For the first time since realization that she was having the baby hit her, Katara felt tears prick at the back of her eyes. It was too much of an effort to hold them back and a few slipped out and fell. "It hurts," she whimpered, wishing somehow the pain would stop.

"It's natural," Kanna said simply. "You'll have to endure it, my little waterbender, but I'll see if I have anything that can help."

"Thank you," Katara whispered as her grandmother left. The room was plunged into silence that was only broken by the waterbender gasping in pain again.

"Can we talk?" she asked Aang, tiredly.

"Sure. What do you want to talk about?" He answered, holding her a little closer as he felt her shudder again.

Katara waited for another wave of pain to pass before replying. "Anything. It's a distraction from the pain."

He gave her a sad smile. "I'm sorry. I wish I could take the pain for you."

She shook her head. "I'm glad you can't," she admitted. "You've had more than enough pain to last a lifetime."

"Not really," he admitted. Honestly, seeing Katara in so much pain hurt worse than anything he'd ever felt hurt about before. But he knew there was little he could to other than hold her and comfort her.

The sound of his name coming from her in a soft yet agonized cry drew his attention back to her and he gently soothed her as she clung tightly to him. Her contractions were closer together now and lasted about a minute, but it seemed like they lasted forever to Aang who felt helpless as he watched the pained expression on Katara's face. The waterbender for her part just held onto him and cried silently. She wondered how the other women whom she and Kanna assisted in the past managed to scream. The pain was so intense, it stole her breath away and she was left gasping when it passed. Vaguely, she wondered how Aang put up with her. She was sure she must have squeezed his arm so hard he had lost all feeling, yet he never once complained. If anything, he had urged her to do whatever she wanted, so long as it was comfortable. But comfort at this point didn't seem to be an option. Even after Kanna had given her something to ease the pain, it was still unbearable. Her only consolation was that it would all be over soon.

"Aang, what if the baby isn't an airbender?" she wondered, suddenly nervous. Her blue eyes were shining with unshed tears.

"It doesn't matter," he said simply, stroking her hair and wiping away her tears. "I'll love it regardless."

She closed her eyes and cried. "But I really want it to be an airbender, for you," she whispered.

"Personally, I hope she's a waterbender so she's just like you."

Despite the pain, Katara laughed. "Are you so sure you can handle that? And what makes you so sure the baby's a girl?"

"You were the one who kept correcting me every time I said the baby might be a boy. Besides, you said it was mother's intuition that told you the baby was a girl."

"I also said it felt like an airbender," she muttered. "I hate not knowing, though. Wouldn't it be nice to know what gender the baby was and what type of bender?"

"But not knowing makes it more interesting," Aang countered. "It's a surprise."

"Knowing isn't half as exciting as being surprised," Kanna said, suddenly entering the room and smiling kindly at the pair. "How are you feeling, Katara?"

"Tired and sore," Katara admitted. Even talking didn't do much to distract her from the pain, but any alleviation, no matter how small, was welcomed. The waterbender didn't think it could get much worse than this, but within a few minutes, she felt an intense pressure build up and fought the urge to break down. A sudden, searing pain had taken hold of her body, setting every nerve on fire until Katara felt like it was tearing her apart on the inside. Her senses suddenly seemed to abandon her for the time being because she couldn't make anything out. Her sense of time had been completely erased; she had no idea how long the pressure and pain (which she felt like she had endured for an eternity) lasted, whether it was mere minutes or hours. Her eyes were shut tightly and her vision was cloudy at best when they were open. Vaguely, she registered someone calling her name and heard faint voices gently telling her to concentrate, but she was incapable of registering who the voices belonged to, whether there were multiple voices or just one. At the moment, all she was conscious of was Aang holding her and whispering soothing words of comfort and Kanna's instructions. The pain was intensifying beyond imagination and Katara was sure if her voice hadn't deserted her or if the pain hadn't stolen it away and if her lungs had had their fill of air, she would have screamed until her voice was gone, but at the moment, she was completely incapable of doing anything other than hanging on to the airbender in a viselike grip and gasping for breath. As another wave of pain set in, she realized just how tired and uncomfortable she was. Her whole body ached and at the moment, due to her lapse in logic, she had no inclination to do anything but sleep. But something kept Katara going for a few minutes longer. Just when she was positive she was going to slip into unconsciousness (or die, as her irrational side suddenly reasoned) the pressure and pain subsided and Katara fell back against Aang, silently thanking the spirits it hadn't lasted any longer.

"See?" Aang said, smugly, once the baby was placed into Katara's arms. "The baby looks just like you."

Katara just smiled at the little bundle of pink wrapped snugly in blankets too happy to even cry. "I think it looks like us."

"You're a miracle worker," Aang said, gently kissing her. The baby cooed in agreement and opened its eyes to look at its parents. Aang swore he saw a smile.

Katara just laughed. "I look like a mess, don't I?" She wondered, shifting her gaze from the baby to her husband.

Aang just brushed aside a few loose strands of hair and grinned. "You look beautiful, like always."

Katara rolled her eyes, but she was smiling. Despite the cute little sounds the newborn was making, she might have fallen asleep on the spot if the door hadn't been thrown open and a certain blind earthbender rushed in with the rest of the family behind her, all demanding to see the child.

"What happened? Did I miss anything?" Toph wondered. Katara just stared in surprise at her friend before pulling her into a hug.

"I can't believe you're here, Toph," she exclaimed.

"Uh…surprise," Suki laughed. "It was supposed to be a secret and Toph wasn't supposed to come until next week, but she actually just got here."

"I was going to join your support team," the earthbender admitted. "But I figured you wouldn't really need one and if you did, you'd have them." Her head nodded in Sokka and Suki's direction. "And Twinkle Toes. So I was just going to come next week like planned, but Sokka sent a messenger hawk and I took the next boat out of the Earth Kingdom."

"But how'd you get here so fast?" Katara asked. "It's still over a day's journey."

"Luckily, the ship I was sailing on had a crew of waterbenders so I kind of bribed them and threatened them to bring me here before you had the baby. I was late, but it's better than waiting a whole week to see the kid. So, what does it look like?"

"If you say the baby looks like a dried up sea prune or it's squishy…" Katara began, as Sokka handed the infant to Toph who looked mildly surprised she was allowed to come within five feet of it.

Sokka just rolled his eyes, grinning. "You know, after our daughter was born, Suki was crying so hard she couldn't even talk. Only you would be able to threaten someone after having a baby, Katara." His sister just laughed as the infant was passed from person to person. Katara wasn't quite sure but, for the first and perhaps only time in her life, she swore she saw Pakku dab at the corner of his eyes as he gazed at the little infant and she swore she had seen Toph smile and whisper something to it. Once the baby was safely given back to the new parents, another round of congratulations was issued and the matter of the newborn's name was brought up and settled before Kanna ushered everyone out of the room, leaving the little family to themselves.

"As much as I love children, I don't think I could ever have twins or triplets," Katara said, trying not to disturb the sleeping child. "I'm beyond tired."

"You should get some rest," Aang said. "You deserve it."

"How's your hand?" she joked, guessing it was probably bruised after the way she had been holding onto it.

"I've still got feeling and circulation, so it must be a good sign," he replied, cheerfully.

Katara chuckled. "I'll heal it later, if you want."

Aang just shook his head. "No, it's perfectly fine. Don't worry about it. You just focus on getting some rest."

Katara yawned and shifted her position so she was more comfortable. "Stay with me?" she asked softly, as her eyes slid shut.

He nodded, smiling. "I wasn't going anywhere anyway."

"Thank you," Katara said, without opening her eyes.

"For what?" Aang demanded. "I didn't do anything. You did all the work."

"I know," she admitted, leaning against him. "But thanks for everything. For just being here and for being the most amazing guy a girl could ever love."

"You don't have to thank me for anything. Avatar part aside, I was just doing my job."

Katara opened her eyes and briefly smiled up at him. "You know how I said the best moment of my life was when I found out we were having a baby?" Aang nodded. "I take that back. This is best moment of my life."

Aang knew every moment he spent with Katara would somehow be the best of his life, but as she fell asleep beside with their little infant resting in between them, he couldn't help but to agree.

* * *

_I don't think I did this any justice, but oh well. The baby was originally supposed to be Tenzin, but since he's the youngest, the older two had to be around somewhere. I realized that when I was almost done with this, so I left the infant unnamed and gave it a vague description so it could be any of Katara and Aang's three children. For those that want it to be Tenzin or the second child, just imagine the older kid(s) around somewhere ^^. Anyways, thanks for reading and thanks for all the reviews I've gotten so far. You're all wonderful! I'm still working on requests from Sylvanna and PandaLily22 (and maybe some others who I've forgotten because I've procrastinated so much I'm losing track of how many requests I have) so I'll try to have those up soon. :)_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	78. Friendly Competitions

_A/N: This request is long overdue. I got it way back after Chapter 61 which I must've posted a couple months ago, so it's definitely taken me a while to get this posted. All credit for this one goes to Emmeline4theoceans who wanted a oneshot where Aang and Katara's kids visit Kyoshi Island. Since there isn't much info on their kids, there's probably going to be lots of discrepancies between this and TLOK, but hopefully it won't matter much ^^. Thanks for the idea, Em, and sorry for the ridiculously long wait. Happy Readings!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar or The Legend of Korra (but I wish TLOK would come out already! Is anyone else dying from impatience? :D)_

* * *

**LXXVIII. Friendly Competitions**

_"It is a curious thought, but it is only when you see people looking ridiculous that you realize just how much you love them."_

~ Agatha Christie

"Are we there yet?" Katara asked, for what seemed like the hundredth time since she and Aang had left the Southern Air Temple. Despite the beautiful summer weather, Katara couldn't wait to land on Kyoshi Island. She didn't think travelling with three kids would be too bad but ever since Appa had left the Southern Air Temple, it seemed that all Kya, Bumi, and Tenzin wanted to do was to play. Kya was too busy trying to bend water out of the clouds and show her mother and father she could waterbend while Bumi just wanted to run from Appa's head to his tail. Tenzin hadn't started walking yet, but he was quite capable of crawling and walking when he had something or someone to hold on to, so he spent most of the ride trying to climb out of the saddle and follow his older brother's example. Thankfully, Appa knew the way to Kyoshi, leaving Aang and Katara to watch over their children which, admittedly, was no easy feat considering that the children seemed hell-bent on having fun instead of just sitting in one place. So the entire ride passed between the two parents scooping up Tenzin just as he was about to climb over the saddle, or telling Kya not to waterbend, or catching Bumi before he fell off of Appa. They never knew how Appa could stand the three little children and all their antics, but the sky bison was surprisingly tolerant of all their games.

By the time they reached Kyoshi, Aang and Katara were exhausted from keeping their children in check, but the three little children were eager to run around and play with their cousin. In no time at all, Kya and Ayako had run off into the vast yard that bordered Sokka and Suki's house and Bumi had followed his father and uncle indoors pretending to be quite grown up by joining their conversation on some topic that was beyond him. That left little Tenzin to Katara and Suki's care and the two women spent the morning relaxing and trying to teach Tenzin how to walk, while Kya and Ayako played in the yard.

The little waterbender was thrilled to be spending time with her cousin and glad there was another girl her age to play with because being the only girl out of all of the Avatar's children did get a little boring sometimes. But she was thankful that Ayako liked just about everything she did, because they hardly ever got into arguments about what to play.

"Dad made me a tree house for my birthday," the four-year old said, leading Kya up a wooden ladder and into a rather spacious tree house. "We can play up here."

"This is amazing," Kya cried, drinking everything in. "I wish I had a tree house but Mom says I can't."

"Why not?" Ayako wondered.

Kya shrugged. "Mom says we don't need a tree house."

Ayako laughed and her blue-green eyes were twinkling. "I can show you how to build one. I helped Dad build this one."

"Really?" Kya asked. "Then I can live in it and Bumi and Tenzin can't bother me when I practice my bending."

"I wish I had someone to play with," Ayako said, wistfully. "I get lonely a lot."

"I wish I had a sister," Kya admitted.

"My mom is going to give me a sister or a brother for my next birthday," Ayako said, handing Kya a cookie from the secret stash she stowed in the tree house.

"Can she do that?" Kya wondered, cocking her head to the side and giving Ayako a puzzled look.

"Of course. Everyone knows you just go to the Temple of Kyoshi and ask for a brother or a sister and you'll get one."

"Who told you that?"

Ayako shrugged. "I don't remember, but that's what I heard."

"You think if we go there and I ask for a sister, I'll get one?" Kya wondered.

Her cousin shrugged. "Maybe, maybe not. I don't know if it will work for you."

"What about my mom and dad?"

"Probably not. I think it only works for my mom."

"But why wouldn't it work for my mom?" Kya demanded.

Ayako shrugged. "She's not a Kyoshi warrior."

"So what? She's a master waterbender."

"Well my mom is a Kyoshi warrior so she's specialer." Ayako just said.

Kya frowned. "No she's not. Aunt Suki can't even bend."

"So?" Ayako shot back. "At least my mom and my dad can fight without using fancy bending to save themselves."

Kya just stuck her tongue out. "Well, my dad is the Avatar, so there."

"My daddy is a master swordsman," Ayako said, smugly. "I bet Uncle Aang doesn't even know how to use a sword."

"My dad doesn't need to," Kya retorted, just as smugly. "He's a pacofist and doesn't believe in hurting people."

"What's a pacofish?" Ayako asked, gazing skeptically at her cousin.

"It's pronounced pac-o-fist," Kya intoned, unaware that she had mispronounced the word herself. "Unlike your dad, he believes in peace."

"Or he just can't fight."

"Hey," Kya cried, suddenly standing up. "He can too. He taught me and Bumi some waterbending."

"I thought Aunt Katara teaches you," Ayako said, offhandedly.

"Yeah, she does. But my dad helps teach us too sometimes. My parents have taught me a lot of things."

"I don't believe you," Ayako said. "I bet pacofish isn't even a word. You made it up."

"Did not."

"Did too."

"I didn't," Kya cried. "I swear."

"Well, I'm older and I don't believe you, so there."

"By three months," Kya screeched. "And I don't lie, like you. I bet you made up the whole story about going to the temple to ask for a sister."

"Ask my mom, then," Ayako shot back, turning away and crossing her arms. Kya just stuck her tongue out again. "She promised me a little brother or sister."

"At least, I have brothers," Kya said, smiling haughtily.

Ayako just made a face and rolled her eyes. "More like little monsters. My daddy said when Tenzin was born he looked like a prune."

"He did not," Kya protested. "He looked cute. I bet you looked like a dried up piece of seaweed."

Ayako just groaned and retaliated with just what she thought her cousins looked like when they were born. Despite their raised voices, the open windows in the house, and the windows in the tree house, none of the parents inside really heard them. At the moment, they were all too busy cheering on Tenzin who was finally starting to walk without holding on to anything or anyone. Needless to say, Suki and Katara found the whole thing quite adorable, while Aang and Sokka just watched on amused. Every now and then, the two would break off from their discussion on politics or something and watch little Tenzin walk on shaky legs from Katara to Suki or vice versa. Bumi was sitting between his uncle and his father, offering his input every now and then. Normally, if had been any random kid, Sokka would have been annoyed, but as his nephew had taken an immediate liking to him, Sokka found Bumi's actions adorable even if he would never admit it out loud. But he did tell the others how he wished he had a son.

"I love Ayako, but I'm starting to think a boy would be nice," he admitted.

"I think one of you is enough," Katara laughed, meeting her brother's gaze. He looked annoyed but his expression softened when Tenzin wobbled on his feet and fell into Katara's lap, giggling loudly and clapping his chubby little hands together. "I think a mini Sokka would be too much to handle."

"If I were you," Aang said to Sokka. "I'd wish for a girl. All three of the kids are a handful, but Kya's the least troublesome."

Katara chuckled. "For now," she pointed out. "That could change in the future. But usually, she's very obedient and doesn't cause much trouble. This little guy on the other hand…," she laughed, gazing down at Tenzin who had started crawling towards Suki again.

Sokka just chuckled and glanced out into the backyard. Having abandoned the tree house for the grassy, open yard, Kya and Ayako were chasing each other around yelling and shrieking. Sokka just smiled at the sight of his daughter playing so happily with his niece but then he noticed Ayako had one of her practice fans out. She never used them unless Suki was training her, but she always kept it with her. Kya was also waterbending a bit and Sokka just grinned. It was nice to see the kids training and showing each other what they can do. But after a few more minutes of watching them spar and listening to their semi-audible yells, it became apparent that they two weren't actually just playing. They seemed to be in some sort of argument, though Sokka wasn't sure what argument between two four year olds could warrant a battle.

"I thought you two were watching the girls," Sokka said to Suki and Katara.

"We are," Suki said, helping Tenzin stand upright before he continued walking again.

"Then why are Kya and Ayako in the middle of a battle?"

Katara's gaze shifted from Tenzin to Kya outside and she gasped as the little waterbender hurled an orb of water at her cousin. Before Sokka could even blink, Suki had deposited Tenzin on his lap and she and Aang and Katara were out the door in an instant. Sokka just beckoned for Bumi to follow and the little waterbender trotted obediently after his uncle who was trying to find out what all the commotion was about. From what he could make out, his sister and his cousin were just running around the yard, covered in water and in dirt. Despite the onlookers, the two girls didn't stop fighting until Kya's waterbending drenched Sokka and Tenzin and until Suki caught Ayako's fan. Eyes wide with surprise, the two girls just stared at the adults, fidgeting awkwardly under their gazes.

"What were you two doing?" Suki asked, sternly.

"She started it," both girls said, pointing to the other.

"It doesn't matter who started it. What were you thinking? You could have gotten hurt," Suki said.

"It was Kya's fault," Ayako insisted, glaring at the little waterbender. "She said you're not special."

"No I didn't," Kya protested. "You're the one that said my dad couldn't fight."

"Girls," Katara admonished, trying to calm them down. "Stop fighting."

"But Mom," Kya whined. "Ayako said you and Dad can't fight because you're benders and that Tenzin looks like a sea prune."

Tenzin grinned happily and Sokka bit back a laugh. Suki just shot him a less than amused look and he became somber. In retrospect, perhaps telling his daughter that little Tenzin looked somewhat like a prune after he was born probably wasn't a good idea, but he hadn't expected his daughter to remember any of their conversation, much less tell little Kya.

"Is that true?" Sokka asked, glancing at his daughter.

She nodded looking rather glum. "But Kya called me a liar and made fun of Mom because she's not a bender and she said you don't believe in peace."

Katara groaned. "Kya, please tell me you didn't say that."

"I kind of did," the little waterbender admitted. "But I didn't make fun of Aunt Suki, I swear. I just said she's not a bender."

"But you said my dad didn't believe in peace," Ayako grumbled.

"Whoa, hang on a minute," Sokka said. "I do too believe in peace."

"But Kya says you're not a pacofish."

"I said pacofist," Kya snapped. "Not pacofish."

"I think you mean pacifist," Aang corrected. "And that's not true. Just because someone isn't a pacifist doesn't mean they don't believe in peace."

"So why were you two having a bending battle?" Suki asked.

"Ayako said I don't know anything and that you and Uncle Sokka are better teachers than Mom and Dad, and I said it wasn't true because Mom and Dad are better fighters so we decided to have a battle to prove it." Kya admitted.

"Kya, you shouldn't say things like that," Aang said, gently. Kya nodded meekly, furiously wiping away a few tears.

"I'll give you this, kiddo," Sokka said, smiling at his niece. "If your Aunt Suki and I had to battle your mom and dad, we'd lose for sure."

Kya sniffed. "Really?"

"Of course, considering that your dad is the master of all elements," Sokka replied.

"And as for being better teachers," Suki said to her daughter. "I think we're all equal in that respect."

Ayako sighed. "I guess. I'm sorry for all the mean things I said."

"Me too," Kya piped up apologized to her cousin and the others.

Their parents just smiled and everyone headed indoors, thankful the whole ordeal had been sorted out. Suki had to admit, if there wasn't a possibility that the two girls could have hurt each other, the whole thing might have been comical, perhaps even cute. But she did find it amusing that instead of arguing over normal things such as dolls or toys as four year olds might, the two girls were arguing about their families.

"Aunt Suki?"

Suki looked down at Kya who was tugging on her dress. "Yeah?"

"Is it true what Ayako says about the Temple of Kyoshi? Will I really get a sister if I go there and ask for one?"

Suki looked puzzled and exchanged glances with the others before all the adults burst out laughing. Everyone was talking at once and laughing. Kya and Ayako just looked at each other and shrugged. They could catch a couple of remarks on how cute they were every now and then, how funny the question was, and suggestions as to what on earth had planted that idea in their heads.

"Getting a sister doesn't exactly work like that," Suki said to her niece. She laughed a little at Kya's crestfallen expression. "Don't you like your brothers?"

"Yeah I do, but a sister would be nice. Mom and I are the only girls in our family."

"I think three kids are enough," Katara said, smiling at her daughter. "And if you want a sister, Ayako can be your sister."

"But she can't come live with us," Kya huffed.

"True, but sisters don't need to live in the same house. They don't even really need to be related," Katara pointed out. "Sisters are kind of like best friends. As long you're good friends and can share everything with them, you can consider yourselves sisters."

Ayako beamed. "Then can my sister and I go back to playing?"

"As long as there's no more fighting."

"Promise," they chorused, racing back out and disappearing into the tree house. The adults just watched them go, chuckling to themselves.

"Those two are hilarious," Sokka laughed, setting Tenzin back on the floor. Bumi suddenly seemed to think their conversation was boring so he quietly played with Tenzin and some of his toys.

Suki just hummed in agreement. "I wonder why they were arguing about us anyway."

"Isn't it obvious?" Sokka asked. "It was a friendly competition to decide who has the better parents."

"And who do you think won?" Aang wondered, knowing Sokka's response before the lanky warrior replied.

"Suki and I did, obviously. We're the cooler parents."

Katara rolled her eyes. "You never change, Sokka."

Sokka just chuckled and launched into a fiery debate with his sister regarding which couple had better parenting skills or something of the sort, leaving Suki and Aang to watch them with amused expressions on their faces. Katara was trying to point out how foolish Sokka was being, but that just lead to another debate on some seemingly unrelated topic until the two were arguing about things from their past that neither Aang nor Suki knew of. Aang had half a mind to yell at them to stop, but Suki just pointed out that their argument was entertaining, if nothing else, so Aang let them be. Neither of them knew how long the siblings had argued, but when Sokka and Katara were done, Aang and Suki were whispering between themselves causing the siblings to give them suspicious looks.

"We were just talking about your argument," Suki said when Sokka asked what they were doing.

"It wasn't an argument. It was…"

"A friendly competition?" Suki quipped, grinning. Sokka nodded.

"Who won?" Aang laughed.

Katara just smiled. "Who do you think?"

* * *

_Thanks for reading. I don't think I did this topic much justice; it was kind of challenging to write since so little information was released on the kids. As always, thanks to everyone who reviewed. You're all fantastic! I'm still working on a couple other requests so hopefully I can have those up soon. Thanks for being so patient, guys. You rock! :)_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	79. Testing

_A/N: I know this is long overdue, but for some reason, it took me forever to finish this. I'm not entirely satisfied with this because I don't think I did it justice but maybe (somehow) this will turn out to be okay. All credit for this one (chapter titled included) goes to Sylvanna. Thanks for the request and sorry for such a long wait ^^. I hope this is decent. Enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything!_

* * *

**LXXIX. Testing**

"_You are all champions in your own way._"

~ Unknown

Aang stared at the little group of people assembled before them and tried to wrap his head around the concept of a bending battle. This hadn't been part of the plan. He and Katara were just supposed to be relaxing together. They'd spent the whole day doing a wide variety of things, so they had decided to come into quaint little tea shop in a secluded corner of Ba Sing Se's Upper Ring to rest for a bit. It wasn't nearly as good as the Jasmine Dragon's tea, but there were very few if any people who could brew tea better than Iroh. In any case, the little tea shop looked like the perfect place to relax, and upon entering it really seemed like it because most of the customers were reading or talking quietly. It was only after they got their tea that Aang thought he noticed Smellerbee and Longshot. He'd gone to see if it was really them, leaving Katara alone for all of five minutes during which time a muscly earthbender offered to keep her company, angering his girlfriend (who happened to be a firebender) in the process. Aang had returned to the table having found neither Smellerbee nor Longshot, but he had been quite surprised to see Katara in a heated argument with another girl. The firebender claimed that Katara had been stealing her boyfriend from her, something the waterbender vehemently denied but somehow, the rest of the girl's posse became involved in the argument. The girl had suggested a bending battle and Katara had opposed the idea until someone who hadn't known who the airbender really was had made a remark about Aang not being able to fight. If there was any tea left in Katara's cup, it would have been bent on that person. She had stood up for him and icily said that if they wanted a bending battle they would certainly get one. Aang himself had just considered trying to solve the problem peacefully, but another muscly earthbender and a couple of girls had insulted Katara and he had promptly agreed to duel. Now, as he watched the little group drink their tea and laugh about how the firebending-earthbending duo was sure to be victorious that evening, Aang wished he hadn't been so quick to agree. Under normal circumstances, he wouldn't have but he was fiercely protective of the waterbender and hated it when people insulted her or any of his friends in general.

"You think we shouldn't have accepted their challenge?" Katara wondered, gazing at Aang.

He shook his head. "No, it's okay. Those guys were way out of line. Nobody insults my girlfriend and gets away with it."

Katara just chuckled. "I'm so glad you're mine. But still, you really think this is a good idea?"

"Honestly, no. But we'll be here as long as the Earth King and Zuko have those peace talks which might be a while. I think if we back out now, they'll just keep bothering us until we leave. Besides," he said, grinning. "It's just a harmless bending battle."

Or so they thought.

During the evening, Aang and Katara and the little posse of benders reconvened. Because they were all students at Ba Sing Se University (with the exception of Katara and Aang), the bending battle was to take place in the University's training grounds. While most of the posse just watched, the firebender and her boyfriend, the earthbender, were chosen to fight (even though they had made it point to declare they'd fight the two one way or another) and pitted against Aang and Katara. When asked what benders they were, Aang and Katara replied air and water respectively, but none of the others made any remark about Aang being the Avatar. Rules were quickly and easily established; the participants were only allowed to use their bending and martial arts skills and weapons of any sort were prohibited. Thus, the battle began.

The earthbender, Zhou, was decidedly odd, Katara mused as they fought. He spent the first five minutes gushing about how perfect this battle was because it was two couples pitted against each other and every element was represented. When he had worn that subject out, he had rambled on about how he and his girlfriend, Xian, the top earthbender and firebender in the University were sure to win. Katara couldn't deny Xian was a good firebender, but she knew Aang was better. He wouldn't firebender, though, or use any element other than air to keep the fight fair. But only she and Aang were playing by the rules apparently. Xian didn't care what she did as long as she helped Zhou beat Katara. Aang had to admit, the part of the jealous girlfriend suited Xian, but he hardly liked the way the firebender was treating them and he was sure he'd end up as the jealous boyfriend if Zhou kept flirting with Katara while trying to bring her down.

"Is your girlfriend tired already?" Xian mocked, dodging Aang's attack. "Pity. The crowd's getting bigger."

"I'd worry more about your boyfriend," Aang said, as Zhou met the receiving end of a water whip and tumbled backwards. Some onlookers cheered. "Besides, he's the one flirting with Katara, not the other way around."

"What do you know?" Xian demanded irately, as Aang extinguished her fire. "Who are you anyway? Where'd you learn that trick?"

"It's not a trick, it's airbending."

She gaped at him. "You're the Avatar?"

Aang nodded.

Instead of deterring her, the newfound knowledge seemed to please Xian. "Then there's no need to hold back. Let's have an Agni Kai."

"Hello? What about us?" her boyfriend demanded.

"You keep fighting. The Avatar and I are going to have an Agni Kai."

"He'll win," Katara said, before turning her attention to the earthbender and resuming their battle. It wasn't really much of a battle because Zhou's earthbending was nothing like Toph's. Having sparred with Toph whose style of earthbending was different and seemed more complex to Katara, the waterbender found it easy to block the chunks of earth Zhou sent at her.

"Are you sure you're the best earthbender? I've fought Toph before and you're nothing like her."

"_The _Toph? You know the Blind Bandit?" Zhou asked. "That is so cool." Katara just gave him an amused look. "I mean…uh…yes I'm the greatest earthbender after the Blind Bandit and King Bumi. And the Avatar, I suppose. And…"

"So you're not the greatest?" Katara said, smirking.

"I'm actually a really great kisser," Zhou said, shamelessly flirting with her.

Katara rolled her eyes. "Aang's better," she muttered, not meaning for anyone to hear it. But Xian perked up the instant the words were out of her mouth.

"I'll be the judge of that," She said, lunging towards the airbender.

"I don't think this is part of an Agni Kai," Aang pointed out, avoiding her.

Xian rolled her eyes. "Well, my boyfriend dumped me for a poor waterbender, so I'll have to settle for the next best thing."

"I'm not poor," Katara huffed, indignantly.

"And I'm the next best thing?" Aang demanded, somewhat insulted.

"And I didn't dump you," Zhou exclaimed. "Honest."

"Then why are you flirting with her?" Xian demanded. "You're supposed to be fighting her."

"I am," Zhou said. "See?"

The ground beneath Katara's feet stirred and her feet sunk into the earth preventing her from moving. Xian started laughing but cried out when the earth beneath her feet shifted, throwing her onto a grating. Aang used a thin stream of water to keep her in place and turned to Zhou.

"I think this makes us even," he pointed out.

"Not quite." Zhou replied. All across the arena, the rocks shifted and moved and the arena erupted in dust and sediment. Aang made his way through the hazy cloud towards Katara and bent her out of her earthen shackles and wordlessly motioned for her to follow him silently. He could feel the vibrations of Xian and Zhou not too far away and waited for the precise moment to strike. But suddenly, he caught the change in Xian's vibrations and felt her take a firebending stance. Without warning, Aang pulled Katara closer to him and the next thing she knew, the earth swallowed them up as Xian's fire consumed the arena. When the smoke and sediment cleared, all the remained was the rock wall Zhou had bent which Xian had attacked from.

"We won," Zhou cried, soundly kissing his girlfriend as their posse of friends cheered and hollered. But the ground parted, spitting up the airbender and a slightly dazed waterbender who, without being able to detect vibrations, hadn't really understood what had happened. Zhou groaned and took a fighting stance with Xian next to him, her hands glowing with the light of the flames she controlled. Instead of taking a fighting stance, Katara just whispered something to Aang and he grinned. Beneath the gratings that were scattered around the arena, there was plenty of water to bend. Katara bent the liquid out, onto the surface and Aang used his airbending to freeze it, producing a thick sheet of ice. Having spent so much time in an area where the winter was relatively mild, Xian and Zhou were totally unprepared to fight on ice. The ice was far too thick for Xian to firebend and because Zhou wasn't in direct contact with the earth, earthbending was a little difficult. Still, the change of terrain hardly deterred the two. Xian came at them for the hundredth time but skidded on the ice, crashing into her boyfriend. When they regained their balance, they resumed their attacks.

Admittedly, the icy terrain should have given Aang and Katara the advantage, but Aang couldn't sense vibrations through ice, so when a pillar of earth broke through the ice and sent Katara flying upwards, Aang almost didn't have enough time to use airbending to cushion her descent. Thankfully, she landed on her feet, unscathed. Unperturbed, Xian came after them again, this time surprising them by generating lightning and blasting it towards them. Almost instinctively, Aang drew up a wall of earth and Katara just gaped at Xian. She had known Azula and Ozai were capable of producing lightening, but she'd never seen someone else do it.

"I bet you weren't expecting that, were you?" Zhou sneered, wrapping his arm around his girlfriend.

"I wasn't," Katara admitted. But she grinned. "But we're not quite finished yet." Ignoring Aang's confused look, she used waterbending to propel herself forward, dodging Xian's attacks before stopping on top of the grating. Beneath the metal bars, the sound of flowing water was a clearly audible and Katara waited for the firebender to move closer.

"I hope you realize I'll win now," Xian said, standing directly in front of Katara. She was directly on top of the grating and Katara smirked.

"Not yet."

In a lightning fast move, reminiscent of her fight with Azula, Katara bent the water beneath the grating upwards, freezing Xian in the process. For a split second, Xian looked thoroughly confused and then the water hurtled downwards, drenching her completely. Still dry, Katara approached the now shivering firebender and bent a thick block of ice over Xian's hands to prevent her from firebending while anchoring her firmly to the ground with more ice.

"Who's going to win now?" Katara wondered as Xian scowled. Aang just marveled at Katara's idea and used his airbending to do the same thing.

"Admit it," the waterbender said, smugly. "We won."

"Alright," Xian grumbled. "You won."

Katara unfroze the pair and Aang used his airbending to dry them off. "Thank you. And next time, don't call my boyfriend a sissy."

"So what do you want from us? Zhou wondered.

Aang blinked. "What are you talking about?"

"Since you won, don't you want something?"

"Um no, not really. We only agreed to this duel because you kind of…well…insulted us," the airbender admitted.

"Yeah. This whole thing was kind of pointless," Katara realized. "We got into some stupid argument over nothing really." Xian opened her mouth to speak, but Katara interrupted her. "And no, I was not trying to steal your boyfriend. I already have one of my own."

"True," Xian conceded, giving the pair a small smile.

"So," Zhou said, as they walked off the arena and the onlookers disbanded. "Any chance you could introduce me to Toph? I'm a huge fan of the Blind Bandit and love to get some tips."

"I think we can pull a few strings," Aang laughed. Zhou gave a silent cheer and Xian gave them the first real smile they had seen her smile.

"Any chance I could meet the fire lord?" Xian wondered. "I wouldn't mind learning a few tips and being friends with him."

"That might be pushing your luck," Katara said. "But I guess you could meet him when you come to see Toph."

"You guys aren't so bad after all," Xian said. "I guess we'll see you around then?"

"I guess so," Aang replied, shaking Zhou's outstretched hand before he and Katara headed back.

Inside their house in the Upper Ring, Sokka and Suki were trying to pry a stuffed Momo from out under the couch where he had gotten stuck and Toph was lounging on the settee.

"How was your day?" Sokka asked, grunting with effort as he and Suki finally managed to free Momo.

"Eh, the usual," Katara replied. "Spent the day relaxing, practiced some waterbending, fought in a bending battle. Nothing out of the ordinary."

"You guys fought in a bending battle and didn't invite me?" Toph cried, feeling upset that she could have spent her day beating someone up instead of being bored at home with nothing to do.

Katara obviously didn't hear her. "Oh and Aang took me to this amazing restaurant for lunch. They had some of the best food in Ba Sing Se."

"Is it one by Iroh's shop?" Suki wondered. Katara nodded and followed her into the kitchen with Sokka and Aang close behind. "Sokka took me there once too. It's his favorite, apparently."

Toph just sighed. "Seriously, you guys didn't invite me to the bending battle?" There was no answer and Toph just made a face even though she knew the others weren't really paying attention. "It's okay because I didn't want to go anyway."

* * *

_Thanks for reading. I hope this wasn't too bad. As always, thanks to everyone who reviewed! You're all wonderful :). I'm still working on requests from PandaLily22, ATHPluver, and a couple others, so hopefully I can have those up soon. ^.^_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	80. The Masters

_A/N: I know it's been a little over a week since I updated, but I was really busy, so it took me a while to write this and post it. Honestly, I had this done a couple of days ago, but I spent a lot of time editing and changing things because I wasn't really satisfied with it. I still feel like it's lacking something, but I'm not quite sure what. Anyway, all credit for this one goes to Somariel who wanted a follow-up chapter. Normally, I try to post requests in the order I get them (something I haven't been doing lately. Sorry) but since this is a follow-up chapter, I figured it'd be kind of stupid on my part to post it later, even though a bunch of people sent me requests (that still I'm working on and will post ASAP :D) earlier. I hope this is decent. Enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender._

* * *

**LXXX. The Masters**

"_Every beginning is a consequence - every beginning ends some thing._"

~Paul Valery

"An earthbender and a firebender?" Suki repeated, glancing at Katara. The waterbender nodded. "What are they coming over for?"

Katara groaned. "Suki, did you pay attention to anything I just said?"

"Hey, be thankful I saved our dinner from Sokka," Suki said, smacking Sokka as he tried to steal a piece of meat. "It's not as easy as it looks."

"I've lived with him my whole life," Katara reminded her, giggling. "You don't need to tell me. And actually, it is as easy as it looks."

"Hello," Sokka cried, waving his arms dramatically. "I'm still right here."

Suki just chuckled and whisked the now covered plate of meat away from the Water Tribe warrior.

"So those two guys you battled yesterday are coming back?" Toph asked, propping her feet up on the table. Katara shot her a glare, not that Toph sensed it.

"Yeah. The earthbender, Zhou, wants to meet you."

"Sweetness," Toph said, grinning. "I get to beat him up."

Katara groaned again. "Toph, can you ever do any earthbending without beating someone up?" Her answer came in the form of a small rock colliding with her head and the waterbender scowled at the blind girl. "Was that really necessary?"

"No," Toph admitted, laughing. "But it was funny."

Katara rolled her eyes.

"So why am I here?" Zuko asked. "I was having fun helping Uncle at the tea shop."

Sokka squeaked and pulled out his boomerang. "Who are you and what have you done to Zuko?" he asked, menacingly.

"Nothing," the Firelord said. "But with all the work that I've been doing, I decided to follow Uncle's advice and try serving tea. It's strangely relaxing."

"Way to go, meathead," Toph teased. "I think you broke Zuko. All your bad jokes and your lame names did him in."

Zuko scowled. "Will someone please answer my question?"

"The firebender, Xian, wanted to meet you." Aang said.

"I hope you told her I have a girlfriend."

"Actually, I told her you like girls like her and you'd be interested in dating her."

Aang practically saw sparks fly from Zuko's hair. "You did _what_?" he bellowed.

The airbender rolled his eyes. "Calm down, Zuko. I was only kidding. She just wants to meet you and she has a boyfriend."

Zuko just sighed. "Do I have to meet her? Why can't you?"

"I'm not the Firelord," Aang said. "Besides, I already know her. Sort of."

Zuko just grumbled something under his breath and stalked off to his room. He didn't see why Katara and Aang had to invite the two benders to meet him. Toph might have enjoyed it, but Zuko wasn't really a people person. It wasn't easy for him to talk to strangers. Collapsing on his bed, he gazed up at the ceiling. He just wanted to relax. Ever since the peace talks started, he had done nothing but work. And now he'd have to go meet some firebender who probably wanted to know all about him and get something by being on his good side. He sighed.

"Leave it to Aang and Katara to make friends with people they were dueling with," he muttered. Unconsciously, he sighed again. Maybe he was blowing this out of proportion. After all, how bad could meeting another firebender be?

The earthbender and firebender arrived a few hours later. Katara made most of the introductions and Zuko just watched them. The earthbender was a muscly, lean man with a tawny mop of hair who vaguely reminded Zuko of Haru. His girlfriend, the firebender, was short and petite but the way she carried herself told Zuko she was a powerful bender and she knew it. Her amber eyes and raven hair reminded Zuko of Azula and he found himself hoping she was nothing like his sister.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Firelord Zuko," Xian said, smiling.

Zuko noted she didn't say it was an honor. He nodded curtly. "Nice to meet you too."

"The waterbender says you'll be staying here in Ba Sing Se for a while."

Zuko glared at Katara and she smirked, leaving the room with Aang close behind her. Zuko swore he heard Aang laughing in the corridor.

"Yeah," Zuko said, lamely. "I…um…meeting with the Earth King and all that."

"Must be boring," Xian said, twirling a lock of her hair around her finger.

"That's not the half of it." Zuko said.

"So," Xian began. "Do you think I could maybe…you know…"

"I have a girlfriend," Zuko blurted out.

Xian blinked and burst out laughing. "You thought that I…?" She doubled over, laughing so hard Zuko thought she might fall over. "I wasn't going to ask to be your girlfriend or anything. You might be the Firelord and all but, no offense, I wouldn't date you even if my life depended on it."

"Oh, right. Sorry," Zuko said, awkwardly. "So what did you want?"

"Just to meet you. And also, I was wondering if you'd teach me some advanced moves. I've heard you're a master."

"Couldn't you just ask Aang?"

"It won't mean much if I say I learned advanced firebending from the Avatar," Xian said. Zuko just gave her a puzzled look. Her statement made no sense, but he didn't ask what she meant and she didn't elaborate. "Will you?"

"Uh…"

"Great, thanks."

"I…"

"I'll see you tomorrow then, Zuko." Xian smiled and left and an irate Zuko off, intent on murdering the Avatar.

"How'd it go?" Katara wondered as he stormed into the kitchen.

"You better worry less about that and more about Aang," Zuko seethed. "I swear, if he doesn't have a good explanation, I'm going to kill him."

"Kill who?" The airbender wondered, entering the room with Momo perched on his shoulder.

"You neglected to mention I would have to teach firebending," Zuko said through clenched teeth. "Now I have to train that girl."

"She said she wanted to meet you," Aang said. "If you agreed to teach her, that's your fault."

"Besides," Toph said, grinning. "You could work on your people skills."

Zuko rolled his eyes. "Whatever."

"I don't see why you're making such a big deal about it," Toph said, laughing. "I think it's great. Zhou's good, but I'm looking forward to teaching him and beating him up while doing so is an added bonus. He's actually looking forward to getting beaten up by me."

"That's nice," Zuko muttered. "But Xian isn't like that. She didn't even address me as Firelord."

"I thought you didn't care," Toph said. "You keep complaining about it."

"I don't, but she acts like we're best friends. I don't even know her."

"You didn't know any of us, either."

"But you guys are different. I used to follow you around, remember? I kind of knew you."

"Honestly," Toph said, picking at her toes. "I think you're making a big deal out of nothing. Just teach the girl ad get it over with. And who knows? You might actually like it."

Surprisingly, Zuko found he did. Maybe it was because it was the first time someone like Azula had looked up to him. He'd never really succeeded in fulfilling the role of being the older brother with Azula but in teaching Xian, he found that he was good at it, even if he didn't have much practice. Xian herself admitted that Zuko reminded her of her older brother. And she often commented on how thankful she was Toph wasn't her teacher because Zhou came home bruised almost every single day. Zuko had seen the earthbender after a session with Toph and he looked tired and sore almost all the time.

"She says she's going easy on me," he said, still cheerful one afternoon as Katara healed some of his bruises. "I wonder what I'll look like when she stops."

"As long as she doesn't rearrange you, I don't mind what you look like," Xian said, as Sokka made retching sounds in the background.

"You two rival Aang and Katara for mushiness," the warrior said. "And that's saying something."

His reply was a water whip to the head and being frozen to a wall.

"Toph says if I keep training I could compete in the Earth Rumble. It'd be so cool," Zhou exclaimed. "I can picture it now."

"You have a long way to go," Toph admitted. "But keep training and you might be able to make it to the semifinals."

"Why not the finals?"

"Because that's when you face me," she said. "And the Blind Bandit always wins."

"But I'll have learned the advanced set by then," Zhou objected. "I could beat you."

The petite earthbender shrugged. "We'll see."

"Speaking of the advanced set, you think I'm advanced enough to learn some moves with lightning?" Xian wondered.

"I guess," Zuko said. "But there's no one who can teach you. I don't know how to generate lightning."

Xian looked at Aang hopefully.

"I can't either," the airbender said. "And even if I could, I wouldn't use it. I don't exactly have the best track record when it comes to encounters with lightning."

"So there's no one who can teach her?" Zhou wondered, glancing at the others. Xian looked disappointed.

Zuko shook his head. "No."

"Actually, I can think of one person who might be able to help," Aang said and the following morning, that was how Xian found herself on the doorstep of a stranger's house, waiting to enter. Behind her, Aang was calmly waiting for the door to open and Zuko was pacing back and forth reprimanding the Avatar for even considering this. Xian didn't see what the big deal was because when the door opened, she was greeted by a young woman about her age demanding what she wanted. Xian opened her mouth, not quite sure how to explain herself, but the woman just stepped aside and let her enter when she noticed Aang and Zuko standing behind her.

The interior of the house was elegantly furnished. It was a small house located in the Upper Ring and judging by the decorations, it was safe to say the resident was from the Fire Nation. The floors were spotless and everything was neat and orderly and in its place. The interior seemed to suit the woman's personality quite well. It neither looked too inviting nor too foreboding, neither too bright nor too dark. The woman herself was immaculately dressed in the red of the Fire Nation and her hair was done up in a neat top knot with a red ribbon trying it in place securely while her bangs framed her face.

"Can I help you with something?" She asked, tersely. Her amber eyes didn't waver in their neutral expression.

"Um…" Xian began. "I'm Xian and I was…told I could get help here."

The woman pursed her lips. "You made a mistake. I can't help. I'm just a Fire Nation citizen on vacation."

"Oh. I'm sorry then."

"Did they send you here?" the woman wondered, nodding at Aang and Zuko.

"Sort of," Xian conceded.

The woman's gaze flickered from Aang to Zuko. "You haven't told her who I am, have you?"

"No," was Zuko's curt reply.

The woman gave a hard laugh. "So, why are you here?"

"That's what I was wondering," Zuko muttered as Xian just gave everyone a puzzled look.

"Do you guys know each other?" Xian wondered.

Aang nodded. "Yeah and she's going to be your new firebending master."

"What?" the woman asked sharply. "This was not part of the deal."

"So what?"

"So, I have no obligation to be anyone's master."

"It's better than wasting away."

"I'm on vacation."

"You're living by yourself in Ba Sing Se, doing noting," Aang corrected. "That's not vacation. Besides, you might be good at being a teacher."

"Have you gone insane?" The woman snapped. "What makes you think I'd teach anyone? And what's wrong with you anyway? A few months ago, you were threatening to imprison me and now you want me to teach her? Has your pacifist nature allowed you to overlook the severity of my crimes? If it has, I'm not complaining, but I'm not teaching her either."

"Look," Zuko said. "You can either teach her or…"

"Or what?" She demanded, turning on Zuko. "You'll send me to prison?" She laughed darkly. "I've already been there. Why do you want me to teach her, anyway?"

"Because I can't," Zuko snapped. "And you can."

"It wasn't part of our deal," the woman shot back, glaring at the two of them. Xian just shifted uncomfortably, wondering who exactly this woman was and why she had been brought here if the woman was making such a fuss about her. "I'm perfectly happy by myself. I don't need to socialize or teach anyone anything." By now the woman's neutral expression was a peeved one and she was glaring at Zuko and Aang.

"Calm down, Azula," Aang said. "It's not the end of the world."

"I don't see why you're making such a big deal," Zuko said, offhandedly. "You should be flattered someone wants you to be their firebending master."

"This was not part of our deal," Azula repeated.

"No," Zuko agreed. "It wasn't. But our deal was that you make an effort to change and I'd make sure you stay out of prison. This counts as an effort to change."

"He's not really asking you to change," Aang piped up, smiling. "Just make an effort to try."

"Stay out of this, Yang," Azula hissed.

"It's Aang," the airbender deadpanned. "After all the time you spent trying to kill me, you still don't know my name?"

"What's was the point? I was going to kill you, not invite you to tea."

"I'd really rather not learn advanced firebending from someone who's going to kill me," Xian said, staring at the trio.

"Don't worry," Zuko said. "If she tries anything, Aang will just take her bending away."

"You can do that?" Xian asked in awe.

"Yeah," the airbender admitted. "But I'd rather not if I don't have to. So I guess Azula will teach you."

"Advanced firebending? Oh, I see," Azula repeated, smirking. "You need me; that's why you came."

"Yeah," Zuko said. "Because no one else can shoot lightning like you."

Azula glanced at Xian. "You can shoot lightning?"

Xian nodded.

"If we could have found another master, we would have," Zuko said. "But you're the only person I know who can teach her."

"Well, isn't this funny?" Azula said. Zuko just glared at her and the firebender sighed. "Alright, I'll do it if it'll get you off my back."

"I guess it's settled then," Xian said. "I can't wait to start."

Azula scowled. "I bet you can't. But don't expect me to go easy on you."

"Of course not, Sifu Azula."

"That's Princess Azula," she corrected.

"Of course, Princess Azula."

Privately, Zuko thought the whole ordeal would end in disaster, but oddly enough, teaching seemed to suit Azula. She thrived under the power of being able to control people and while she didn't have control over Xian as she had once had over her guards and Mai and Ty Lee, she had enough to satisfy her. Even though Xian was similar to Azula in many respects, the two firebenders got along surprisingly well. Zuko had been so shocked by everything he had honestly considered breaking his end of the bargain and putting Azula back in prison because he thought she had some ulterior motive. But Azula never once gave him a reason to send her back.

"We should have just tried that sooner," Sokka said sarcastically, after Zuko had explained what had happened. Everyone had assembled outside to watch Toph and Zhou spar. The earthbender was improving rapidly under Toph's guidance, but as Sokka saw him get buried by a rockslide from the corner of his eyes, he thought he had quite a way to go. "We should have just given her a bunch of firebenders to train during the war. It would have made it so much easier for her to kill us."

Katara just smacked him. "Why can't you just accept that she might change?"

"Hello?" her brother cried, waving his arms about. "Have you forgotten that she tried to kill us? What if she turns Xian into a crazed minion and they come after us."

"Azula might miss doing what she used to do before the war, but she's not stupid," Suki reasoned. "She won't do anything like that."

"But this is Azula we're talking about," Sokka protested.

"So what?" Zuko demanded. "Look, I know the chances of her changing are really slim, but she's not stupid enough to try anything because if she does, I promised I'd send her to the Boiling Rock and Aang would take her bending away."

"Besides," Aang said. "Azula seems to like teaching only because she can boss Xian and get away with it, so who knows? She might change after all."

Sokka just gave him an annoyed look. "You never lose that positive attitude, do you?"

"Nope," the airbender replied, cheerfully as Sokka groaned.

By then, Toph and a bruised Zhou had finished their sparring session and come to join the others. Toph found it hilarious that Xian was learning from Azula, but Zhou was mortified.

"You let my girlfriend train with the Princess of the Fire Nation?" he cried. Everyone nodded. "What if Azula turns her into a power-hungry firebender, or a slave, or something worse?" he asked, worriedly.

Needless to say, when Azula helped Xian become one of the most powerful firebenders in Ba Sing Se, Zhou wasn't complaining. He was perfectly content until Toph signed him up for a bending battle as a reward for having passed her rigorous training sessions. When he met his opponent on the arena on the day of the final match, he was shocked to discover it was Xian. As the couple took their stances on opposite sides of the arena, Zhou couldn't help but wonder at how things had turned out. But as the bending battle started, he caught Toph's eye and gulped. What was the Blind Bandit's punishment for losing the tournament?

"I think you're scaring him," Katara said to Toph as Zhou just cast another worried glance in her direction before dueling Xian.

"He'll get over it. Oh and by the way, there's something I've been meaning to give you and Twinkletoes."

Aang, who was standing next to Katara, just looked at his friend warily. "What?"

A pillar of earth shot up, knocking Katara into Aang and Toph chuckled as they tumbled onto the floor.

"That," Toph said, grinning at her friends. "Was for not inviting me to the bending battle the other day."

And without another word, she sauntered off to watch the rest of the bending battle.

* * *

_Thanks for reading and thanks for all the reviews I've gotten so far. You're all amazing! :)_

_~ Cassie_


	81. Family Moments

_A/N: Le sigh (feel free to skip this paragraph. I just needed to vent ^^). Today was an awful day for me. I nearly fell getting off a bus (not while it was moving; it was kind of funny, actually), almost locked myself out of my dorm, nearly lost my laptop and the list just keeps going on and on. I've got a ton of work to do and I was so tired and sick of it all, I was honestly considering taking a break from Fanficton until May or June and just focusing on getting all my work done, but somehow, I've gotten addicted to writing and apparently, I can't sleep unless I know I've written something just for fun. (Weird, right? ^^) Honestly, I wasn't going to update today, but I'm terribly behind on requests (my fault, really) so I decided to post. Truthfully, it's been kind of tough to get these chapters posted because I'm really busy and I've been pulling a lot of all-nighters finishing work or just writing (partly from insomnia, which seems to have become my new best friend, and partly because it's relaxing in a strange way). I was seriously considering not updating again for a few months (and by serious, I mean there was a good chance I was actually going to take a break), but I love this fandom (and writing in general) too much to take a break and it wouldn't exactly be fair to all the people who sent me requests that I never got around to doing. And this may seem completely random, but thanks to everyone who's following this story. Sometimes, just seeing how many people have favorited it and put it on alert brightens my day. It's nice to know people like it and if they don't at least it might make them laugh. :)_

_If you managed to get through that paragraph (and/or understand it), congrats! I'm in a much better mood now, so I promise I'll never rant again and just stick to my usual, short and repetitive author's notes, hehe. All credit for this chapter goes to PandaLily22, who wanted a Katara/Aang family moment. Apparently, it's been revealed that the names for Aang and Katara's older two children are Kya and Bumi (so pysched I got one right :D), so I've edited some chapters to be a bit more canon compliant. Anyways, I hope this is decent and sorry for rambling. Enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender or Avatar: The Legend of Korra._

* * *

**LXXXI. Family Moments**

**"**_Rejoice with your family in the beautiful land of life!_"

~Albert Einstein

Katara shifted under the covers and moved closer to Aang, burying herself in his warmth. A rare winter thunderstorm was raging outside despite the freezing weather. The shadows of raindrops danced on the far wall as lightning illuminated the room and thunder pealed in the distance. A thunderstorm usually warranted a sleepless night as Aang and Katara often stayed up to watch it and talk, but with three kids and all the work they were doing, the tradition was becoming less common. They were both tired and exhausted after the long hours they had put in. In spite of that, Katara couldn't fall asleep. She didn't know if it was because of all the noise from outside or the rattling of the window pane or from the cold that seemed to seep into their room and under the covers. Suppressing a groan as the window pane rattled loudly, she shivered and scooted closer to Aang. For some reason, she couldn't seem to get warm. The airbender felt her shift beside him and opened his eyes, smiling in the dark even if Katara couldn't quite see.

"Couldn't sleep?" he wondered.

Katara nodded. "I'm not really sure why. But that stupid window is driving me crazy," she muttered. As if on cue, the window burst open and the noise from outside increased. Aang made a move to get up and close it, but sleep made him slow. Katara was faster and in an instant had crossed the room and bolted the window shut. She crawled back into bed, shivering.

"I don't know why there's thunderstorm in the middle of winter. It's so cold," she complained, burying her face in her pillow.

Aang just wrapped his arms around her and laughed. "Better?"

"Much," came her muffled response as she sighed contentedly. "Now if only I can get to sleep."

The airbender chuckled as a particularly loud clap of thunder sounded above them. From somewhere down the hall, he heard a door being thrown open and the sound of footsteps scurrying down the hall. "I don't think that's going to happen."

Katara sighed, reluctant to leave the warmth of Aang's embrace, but she knew their children would be in their room any minute, demanding a distraction from the storm which had probably frightened them.

"They'll probably want a story," she said, laughing.

"You try getting some sleep," he said, gently kissing her forehead. "I'll take care of them."

"Be realistic, Aang," Katara laughed, detangling herself from him and sitting up. Half a second later, she wished she was curled up beside him again. "Do you really think I can even make an attempt to go back to sleep with three kids in here?"

"Probably not," he admitted, sitting up and rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "But you should still try."

"Too late," she whispered, as Kya, Bumi, and Tenzin rushed in looking tired and scared. Aang and Katara just exchanged glances knowing it would be a long night.

"I'm scared," Tenzin admitted as Aang helped the little airbender onto their bed. Kya had already planted herself between her mother and father and Bumi had ducked under the covers as a fork of lightning lit up their room.

"Why is it so loud?" Kya asked, covering her ears as another clap of thunder sounded.

"You'll get used to it," Aang promised.

"I don't like it," she whined, as Bumi just clung to Aang.

"It's just a storm," Katara said, trying to soothe them. "Try and get some sleep."

"But, Mom, it's so loud," Kya said, flinching as the noise picked up. "How can we sleep?"

"Simple. You just…"

A bright fork of lightning flashed and the rather loud clap of thunder pealed and Kya cried out in terror, throwing herself at her mother and clinging to her as if her life depended on it.

"What's gotten into you three?" Katara wondered. "It's just a storm. You've never been this scared before."

"I don't like it," Kya whined.

"It's not that bad," Aang said, as Bumi and Tenzin dove under the covers, knocking their heads together in the process. He stifled a laugh. "Think of it as all the elements working together. There are probably three powerful benders fighting some bad guys somewhere. The firebender is bending lightening and the rain comes from the waterbender bending. And an airbender is making all that wind."

"What about the earthbender?" Bumi wondered.

"He's way below the ground making sure the earth absorbs all the water and fire the waterbender and firebender are using to stop the bad guys."

"Why are the bad guys attacking?" Tenzin wondered, not quite catching on to the analogy. Katara laughed.

"They just like picking fights," Aang said, smiling.

"Oh."

"I never used to like storms either," Aang said as all the kids dove under the covers yet again. "But it's actually kind of fun watching them."

"How?" Kya demanded. "It's scary."

"Not really. At first, it might seem like that, but after a while, you notice how pretty it is."

"I still don't like them," Kya huffed, peeking up beyond the blankets. Aang chuckled.

"I happen to like storms," he said. "It was how I met your mother."

Three little heads poked up from under the bedspread and all eyes were on him. Katara had an amused expression on her face and was trying not to laugh.

"You saved Mom from a storm?" Bumi asked.

"Actually, she saved me. And we weren't in a storm," Aang explained. "When I was little, I ran away. Appa and I got caught in a storm and we almost drowned. But I used the Avatar state to freeze us into an iceberg and that's how your mom found us. But if it hadn't been for the storm that nearly killed us, and your mother's temper, we wouldn't have met."

"You should be thanking my temper," Katara said, smiling. "If I hadn't been so mad at Sokka and if my waterbending hadn't been so out of control, you'd probably still be frozen in that block of ice."

"Probably," he consented. "Thanks."

She grinned. "Anytime."

"More stories," Tenzin demanded. "Please?"

"I think we've told you everything at least a dozen times," Katara said. "What else do you want to hear?"

"How about the time Dad got in trouble?" Bumi suggested.

"Which time are you referring to?" Aang wondered, smiling. "I got in trouble a lot."

"You can say that again," Katara muttered, shaking her head.

"What about the time you got in trouble in school?" Kya said. "Uncle Sokka said you threw a dance party for a Fire Nation school and danced with all the girls. He said Mom was really jealous."

"I was not," Katara cried, indignantly. "I was just…"

"Jealous?" Aang teased. Kya giggled.

"I'm going to kill Sokka," Katara seethed. The small smile and blush on her face, however, said otherwise.

"So were you?" Kya wondered, glancing up at Katara.

"Of course not."

"She was," Aang whispered, eliciting several laughs from his children and a glare from his wife.

"You're one to talk. Do I need to remind you about…?" She was cut off by thunder and the children dove under the covers again Katara and Aang just exchanged glances, knowing that if they didn't distract their children, they'd all be up until morning. But even the stories didn't do much to distract them.

"I don't think I'm going to fall asleep," Bumi said, after a few minutes. "Can we play a game?"

"How about another story instead?" his mother suggested and all three children eagerly nodded. "Which one would you like to hear?"

"Can you tell us about the time you saved a village from a volcano?" Tenzin pleaded, poking his head out from under the covers again.

"But you've already heard that," Katara said. Tenzin just gave her a smile and she sighed, launching into the tale.

"Your father and I were travelling with Uncle Sokka when we met a stranger who told us about a fortuneteller. So we decided to go see her to get our fortunes read. Everyone in the village relied on her fortunes and she told them that the volcano nearby wouldn't destroy their village, but Uncle Sokka and your father realized it would, so Uncle Sokka came up with a plan to build a trench to redirect the lava into the nearby lake. We managed to get the villagers to help and we made big trench, but it wasn't big enough."

In spite of having heard the story countless times before, all three of their kids gasped and their parents just laughed.

"Then what?" they all chorused.

"Uncle Sokka and I started to leave, but your dad decided to stop the volcano and he saved the town. So in the end, the fortuneteller's predictions were somewhat wrong. If we hadn't made the trench, the lava would've burned all the houses in the village."

"So fortunetellers are liars?" Bumi asked, blinking in confusion.

"Not quite," Aang laughed. "But they're not always right."

"They are right about some things though," Katara pointed out. "The fortuneteller did say I'd marry a powerful bender, and I did."

"Uncle Sokka said you guys also messed with the clouds," Kya said. "What does that mean?"

"The fortuneteller used to read the clouds to predict what would happen, so we found the symbol for volcanic doom in her book and bent the clouds in that shape," Katara said.

"How?" Kya demanded. "Is that even possible?"

"Sure. Clouds are made of water and air. Maybe one day, we'll take you guys and show you. Then you can try."

Tenzin and Bumi cheered and Kya just hugged her parents.

"You guys are the coolest parents ever," the little waterbender cried.

Katara chuckled. "You won't say that in a few years."

"Yes I will," her daughter replied, matter-of-factly. "I always will."

The children quieted for a minute but then demanded more stories, so Katara and Aang took turns alternating and telling them tales. They told them story after story, from meeting Suki to defeating Ozai. Some were easier to relate because they didn't have to be watered down for the children, but others were a lot harder to talk about. They left out certain tales such as their encounter with Hama, Jet's death, Katara going after Yon Rha, but they did tell the kids about Ember Island, though neither of them were sure why. Yet, despite all the stories they exhausted, the storm still didn't let up and the kids still didn't fall asleep. They claimed they were still too scared to fall asleep, so Aang and Katara just racked their brains for a solution.

For a few minutes, the room was filled with silence then Kya shifted and spoke again.

"Mom, will you and Dad always tell us stories?"

Katara looked at her daughter in surprise. For a five year old, Kya was quite intelligent, but sometimes asked the strangest questions.

"Why do you ask?"

Kya yawned. "I like your stories. When I grow up, I want to be able to tell stories just like you and Dad."

"Your uncle is probably a better storyteller than we are," Aang admitted.

Katara just smiled. "He's more dramatic, that's for sure."

"Do you think we'll have adventures like you?" Kya wondered, looking at Aang.

"I'm sure you will."

"I want to save the world," Bumi said. "Just like you and Mom."

"Let's hope you don't have to," his mother replied, stifling a yawn.

Tenzin yawned and smiled. "I'm sleepy. Can we sleep here?"

Katara nodded. "But no talking. You and your brother better be quiet."

Kya snickered and Tenzin just glared at her. It was no secret that the children whispered to each other when they couldn't sleep. It wasn't loud enough to keep their parents awake, but it was audible nonetheless.

"Can you sing us a song?" Kya asked, drowsily. "Just like when we were little."

Katara wanted to point out Kya was still little but didn't. "You know I can't sing, Kya."

"Please, Mom?" all the kids chorused.

"You don't need me to sing you to sleep."

"You should do it, Katara." Aang said, grinning mischievously. He knew she thought she couldn't sing, but no matter how many times he told her she sounded perfect, she was hesitant to sing anything.

"Not you too," she groaned. "You know I couldn't sing even if my life depended on it."

"No," he disagreed. "I don't know that."

"Please?" Tenzin begged, already half asleep.

Katara just sighed and began humming. The three children were already too sleepy to argue about the difference between humming and singing and let themselves drift off to sleep. Aang was still up, staring off into space and listening to the storm outside. By the time the thunder and lightning stopped, the three kids were fast asleep and by the time the rain stopped, Katara had drifted off as well. The wind was still blowing fiercely outside and the airbender was up for a while longer listening to it wail and howl. Just as he was about to make an attempt to sleep, the window burst open again and Aang hurriedly got up to close it so the noise wouldn't awaken Katara and the kids. He had it bolted shut in in an instant and made his way back to his side of the bed, but stopped when he caught sight of his reflection in the mirror. For a minute, it wasn't a young man that gazed back at him, but a smiling twelve year old boy with a grin plastered on his face who seemed to be gazing (as if he was a real person who was looking through a window into the future) at Katara and the kids curled up next to each other and sleeping peacefully. Aang chuckled to himself and his younger self seemed to glance back at him with that same goofy grin plastered on his face. You did good, kid, he thought, smiling at the reflection that seemed to grin even wider before disappearing altogether. If someone had told him all those years ago how things would have turned out, he was sure he would have died from ecstasy on the spot. But now that he and Katara were married and had a family, it didn't seem quite so hard to believe. It seemed as if things had almost always been this way, as if he and Katara had always been together and as if the children had always been with them. And as he gazed at the figures of his wife and children, he was sure things would stay this peaceful for some time yet.

Outside, one last dim bolt of lightning flickered and a clap of thunder gently echoed above before the storm clouds were ushered away into the dark by the wind. A crescent moon shone dimly over the horizon and there was the faintest trace of light where the midnight blue sky met the darkened contours of the earth. A few stars twinkled brightly and erratically, as if clinging to the vestiges of night before the early morning light would them to fade. In another few hours, the sky would be colored with the shades of dawn and Aang knew he'd have to go back to work, whether it was attending some meeting or helping Katara at home. But it was still dark for now, and he intended to get some sleep. Checking the window one last time, he walked to his side of the bed, stopping momentarily to drape a blanket over Katara. Before falling asleep himself, he cast one last glance at his family curled asleep next to each other with peaceful expressions on their faces and smiled. He couldn't say what would happen once he and Katara got older, or what would happen when their kids grew up, but he was certain of one thing. No matter what, he was sure there would be countless moments such as these to cherish in the future.

* * *

_Thanks for reading and as always, thanks for all the reviews I've gotten so far. You guys are awesome! :)_

_~ Cassie_

_P.S. I'm still working on a few requests and I promise I'll get those up as soon as I can. (I'd make an Avatar promise, but I'm not an avatar, so how about a virtual pinky promise? ^^)_


	82. Strength

_A/N: No ranting as promised. I know I should really be posting one of the requests I was given, but I'm not quite finished with them and I feel like if I should post this just in case I can't post later this week. So, like many other chapters, this is just a little something to tide you all over until I can get those requests up. ^^ For those who sent me requests, thanks for being so patient and (as promised) I'll post those ASAP. Anyways, hope this chapter isn't too bad. I was sick when I wrote it, but hopefully it didn't affect anything. Happy readings!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar._

* * *

**LXXXII. Strength**

"_Strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from an indomitable will._"

~ Mahatma Gandhi

"Hold still," Aang admonished, bending some water around Katara's outstretched foot. He was trying, and meeting with little success, to apply ice to Katara's foot. She bit back a laugh as the cold water tickled her skin and obediently did as he told her. When Aang gently blew on the water, freezing it over, Katara instinctively drew her foot back, wincing as her foot made contact with the ground.

"Katara…"

"What? It's cold," she whined. "And it tickles."

"Well, it's never going to get better if you keep moving it around so much."

"It'll be fine," she said, trying not to laugh as Aang finished encasing it in ice. It was supposed to help the swelling, but it tickled her foot more than anything else. "It doesn't look like a balloon anymore since the swelling went down."

"It'd heal a lot faster if you'd stay off it," Aang chuckled.

"I can't help it," she sighed, leaning back on the divan. "I'm used to keeping myself busy and moving around, not just sitting in one place all day."

"You better get used to it," Aang said, melting the ice after a few minutes and using his airbending to dry off the water. It took nearly everything Katara had not to jerk her foot away. "You'll be like this for a couple of weeks."

Katara groaned. "Don't remind me."

Aang just wrapped her foot tightly with a bandage before slipping her cast on. Ever since she'd fallen down the stairs last week and broken her leg, he'd been extra careful to make sure she didn't hurt it more. But Katara was Katara and she would never let a broken leg prevent her from doing what she wanted to do and what needed to be done. For the last week, she had been hobbling all over the house, ignoring Aang's protests to rest. Sokka had lent her his crutches from when he had broken his leg, but the waterbender stubbornly refused to use them, claiming they made her feel like an old woman using a walking stick. Aang had honestly considered keeping her rooted to the ground through his earthbending, but that seemed too extreme and the shocked look she had given him when he had playfully suggested that drove the idea out of his mind altogether. Still, he knew Katara needed to rest and even she knew that, but she still didn't rest. Aang just sighed and made sure the cast was firmly in place before leaning back to admire his work. The fancy cast the village doctor had given her was supposed to prevent her from putting weight and pressure on her injured leg but, privately, Aang didn't think it did anything other than a normal cast did.

"You're going to be late for your meeting if you keep staring at my foot," Katara chuckled.

Aang smiled and got up. "Yeah, I know." He planted a gentle kiss on her forehead. "Please try to stay off your foot."

Katara just rolled her eyes as he walked out. "I know. See you later," she called, waving as he disappeared. She watched his figure from the window and only looked away when she could no longer see him. Sighing, Katara repositioned herself on the divan and just sat. She spent a good hour just sitting and doing nothing, trying to keep her promise to Aang. At first, it wasn't so bad. It was a beautiful spring morning and Sokka had opened the windows before he and Suki had gone out, so Katara was able to hear the birds singing and the bubbling of the little creek that ran beside the house. Occasionally, she could hear faint voices raised in laughter or speech whenever a few villagers walked along the road that snaked its way past the house. Even if the road wasn't visible from where she was, she could hear snippets of conversations and spent the first hour trying to guess who was walking along the road, or listening to the sounds of spring all around her. But that could only occupy her for so much time and it wasn't long before she found herself bored. She desperately wished she had something to read or something to write with, but both her book and the parchment they all kept was upstairs. Gingerly lifting herself off the divan, Katara limped towards the staircase, ignoring the searing pain in her foot. The staircase wasn't all that big, but since she had broken her leg, she'd never gone up or down alone; someone, usually Aang, always helped her. But Katara hated being dependent on anybody for something as trivial as climbing the stairs, so she hopped up slowly. She knew if Aang or Sokka found her, she'd never hear the end of it, but she liked knowing she could do things on her own. After all, no matter how close they all were, her friends wouldn't be with her every single moment of her life. In the future, if she broke her leg while no one was around to help her, she reasoned she'd have to help herself, so this was good practice.

She made her way to her room and retrieved her book in no time, but going back down the stairs was a lot harder than coming up. Holding a book in her hand certainly didn't help, but Katara couldn't think of any other way to bring it down, so she took the stairs one at a time, hopping slowly from one to the other. In spite of how slow she was going, and in spite of holding on to the banister, she managed to slip and tumbled down the last three steps before landing gracelessly, in a heap, at the foot of the staircase. Luckily, her injured leg hadn't taken a beating, but her side had. She realized it was probably bruised and a quick look confirmed it. Katara bit her lip in frustration. If Aang found out, she knew she'd be in trouble. She felt bad enough he was coming back during his break every day to check on her, but she knew if he found out about this, he'd abandon his work altogether to keep an eye on her or worse yet, Sokka would ask Suki to. Katara knew if she really wanted to and if she tried, she could convince Aang to let her do almost anything no matter what condition she was in. Granted, there were times when he put his foot down and refused to let her do certain things if she was hurt, but Suki was a different story. If Sokka told her to make sure Katara didn't move, the waterbender knew Suki would do it, even if it meant tying Katara to a stationary object or shadowing her every minute and forcibly making her sit when she didn't want to. No amount of pleading or begging would make Suki change her mind.

"I guess I'll just have to keep it a secret," she muttered to herself. She would have healed it, but her water skin was in her room and Katara didn't think she had it in her to go back up and get it. In any case, waterbending was a lot harder to do with a broken foot. Even the simplest moves were difficult because she often balanced on her good leg and her hands were unsteady and she was wobbling. So keeping it a secret was her only option for the time being.

Admittedly, it should have been easy because Katara was good at keeping secrets, but she hadn't realized how tender her side was. If she so much as brushed against something, it hurt. When Aang came home that afternoon to check on her, she managed to keep quiet until they ate lunch together, when she had to be helped to the table. When he slipped an arm around her waist to support her, it took all the self-restraint Katara had to not cry out in pain. But her eyes gave it all away even if she didn't. Aang knew something was wrong just by looking at her and as Katara collapsed into a chair, he just gave her a concerned look.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

She flashed him a smile he recognized only too well. It was her I'm-hurting-but-I-don't-want-to-worry-you smile. "I'm fine," she replied.

"You're lying."

"No, really," She insisted. "I'm alright."

"What happened?"

"Nothing. Honestly, Aang, stop worrying."

He sighed and just handed her a plate of food. Normally, Katara loved when he came home every day to check on her because she and Aang always ate lunch and spent time together before he went back. But today, the two ate in silence not really speaking. When they did, it was mostly just to make conversation and pass the time. They talked about the weather, work, boredom, and Katara accidently let slip part of her secret. Aang didn't know about her bruised side, but he looked irritated when she mentioned she had wandered up on her own to get a book.

"What were you thinking?" he demanded, angrily. "You could have gotten hurt."

"But I didn't," she protested, meekly. She only hoped he didn't catch her lying. She could never lie anyway, especially not to Aang.

"But still, that was really stupid. What if you had…?"

Katara slammed her chopsticks down and glared at the airbender. "You can't keep treating me like this. I'm not a helpless little girl who can't do anything. I can take care of myself."

"I'm only trying to help."

"Well, you're not. I broke my leg; it's not like I'm dying. I really don't see why you guys are acting like this."

"You think any of us like seeing you like this?" he demanded, meeting her gaze. "We're only looking out for you."

"Well stop it," she snapped. "I can take care of myself. I don't need anyone's help." She glared down at her plate and resumed eating. It wasn't until she heard the sound of a chair scraping against the floor that she looked up. Aang disappeared into the kitchen and she heard the sound of china clanking and guessed he was done with his meal. He walked back to the front door and stopped momentarily as if he was debating whether or not he should talk to her.

"If you're worried I'll do something stupid again, you can stop," Katara said, picking halfheartedly at her food. "I won't."

"That's what you said before," Aang pointed out, dully. "And then you decided to…"

"I really don't see why you're so concerned," she said, angrily. "It's my leg that's broken, not yours. You're not the one who has to sit in the same place for hours. Do you have any idea how boring it is? So what if I went upstairs by myself? I'm not a baby; I can handle myself just fine, so stop acting like it's the end of the world. I don't need you or your help."

The words were out even before Katara realized what she said. She didn't mean any of it, but her temper often got the better of her and she seldom had a chance to explain what she really meant. Now was one of those times.

"That's not what I meant," she said, hastily. "I was just…"

"No, I get it." He said, evenly.

"Aang, I…"

"Forget it. I understand."

"Will you shut up and let me explain myself?" she cried. She was desperate and she hated how she sounded, but she didn't want Aang to leave thinking she meant what she had said. She was just riled up and it had been her temper speaking for her.

"I think you've done enough explaining," he replied, icily. "But if you break your other leg, please don't say I didn't warn you." He was out the door in a flash and Katara hurried after him, but she didn't make it far before her legs gave way underneath her and she collapsed onto the floor, cursing her injury that prevented her from running after him. She tried calling his name, but all the came out was croak and if he heard it, he certainly didn't acknowledge her. And then, something inside her snapped and Katara just burst into tears, burying her face in her hands and letting her quiet sobs stir the deafening silence that pervaded the house. She hated fighting in general, but more than anything, she hated fighting with Aang. It always left her feeling scared and broken. Even though they always made up, some part of her was always afraid he would one day take her words to heart and leave her.

She didn't know how long she sat there crying, but she cried until all her tears were spent and then got up to take care of the remnants of her lunch and prepare dinner. It wasn't easy with her broken leg and it hurt even if she didn't put pressure on it, but she didn't care anymore. She couldn't let a little pain stop her from making dinner. She worked slowly and often had to take quick breaks to stretch her leg and make sure it didn't fall asleep. When Aang returned in the evening, he found her in the kitchen but Katara didn't greet him and he didn't say anything. He was in and out the rest of the evening, running errands with Sokka and Suki. He came back a couple of times to hear loud noises coming from the kitchen, but thinking better about facing Katara's wrath, he left her alone. It wasn't until sunset that he ventured into the kitchen to see what was wrong.

He found Katara in tears and the kitchen a mess when he entered. Evidently, things hadn't been going the way she planned because there were several batches of messed up stew lined up on the counter waiting to be disposed of properly. The waterbender was furiously cutting some vegetables, trying to finish in time for their evening meal, but only succeeded in making a bigger mess and slicing her finger. She cried out in pain and hobbled over to the sink to run it under cold water, but nearly fell backwards in the process. But determination kept her going and despite the pain, she made it to the sink and washed away the blood. She tried hopping back to her counter on the far end, but after standing for so long on her good leg, it seemed as if it wasn't capable of supporting her anymore and after a single step (or rather, hop), she fell face first onto the floor. Aang rushed to help her but Katara was already up despite the pain lancing through her. Her face was set in an expression of sheer determination and her eyes held a note Aang had only known them to possess a few times before. He knew that look quite well. She was in pain, but she wouldn't admit it, lest she worried the others. So she'd keep that strong façade, even if it killed her and went back to work.

"It hurts, doesn't it?" he asked, gently.

She looked over her shoulder at him and then back at her cooking.

"How would you know?"

"Katara," he laughed. "I'm an airbender; I must have broken every bone in my body at least once when I was little."

She didn't say anything, but merely continued cutting the vegetables until a chuck of something flew from the cutting board and landed with a _plop_ into the soup that was boiling nearby. For a moment, she stood stock still, mouth agape, staring at the soup, which Aang noted didn't smell too good, and then threw down the cutting knife and doused the fire and placed the ruined soup next to the five other pots lined up along the countertop. If she had been the violent type, Aang was sure there would have been soup splattered all over the walls and remnants of cut vegetables everywhere. But she just sank to the ground, drew up her knees, and buried her face in her hands, crying quietly. He gazed at her sympathetically before kneeling next to her.

"Katara?"

"What?" She croaked, lifting her head to meet his gaze.

He smiled. "You have food in your hair." He reached out and pulled a piece of some vegetable out of her hair.

Her eyes seemed to water even more as she stared at the thin slice in his hand. "You're not helping," she said, as more tears fell.

He sighed. "I know. I'm sorry I was so mean to you earlier. It's just…"

"What?"

He gave her a small smile. "You can be so infuriating sometimes, you know?"

She sniffed. "Thanks. I feel so much better," she said, sarcastically.

Aang laughed.

"If you're just going to laugh at me, go away," she instructed, turning away.

"I'm not here to laugh at you," Aang said, removing another piece of food from her hair.

Katara just turned to face him. "Then why are you here?"

He shrugged. "You look like you could use some cheering up." He stood up and offered her his hand. "Come on. Sitting on the kitchen floor probably isn't that comfortable."

Katara just ignored his proffered hand and carefully stood up, trying not to wince in pain.

"Doesn't your leg hurt?" the airbender wondered.

"No," she answered, but her eyes said otherwise.

"You know, it's okay to ask for help."

"I don't need help," she said, hobbling after him. "I can manage just fine." Of course, the moment she said that, she nearly tumbled forward again, but Aang caught her and steadied her before she fell. He helped her to the sofa and hurried away to get something. When he returned, he was holding a small bandage and began bandaging her finger.

"I can do it myself," Katara said dully, wiping away few lingering tears.

"I know," he replied, cheerfully.

"Then why are you doing it for me?"

"I'm not. I'm doing it because I like knowing I can."

Katara met his gaze. "What are you talking about?"

He shrugged, not really sure how to explain himself. "I just like knowing I'm useful and can do simple things like this."

"Aang, you are useful."

"As the Avatar, not Aang."

"That's not true."

He shrugged and finished bandaging her finger. Katara examined it and gave him a small smile.

"Thanks."

"It was nothing," he said. He watched her for a minute before speaking again. "You don't have to be so strong all the time."

It took Katara a minute to understand what he was trying to say. "Yes I do," she said, softly.

He shook his head, smiling. "No, you don't. You can ask for help, Katara. Sometimes being strong means asking for help."

"I don't like asking for help or having other people do things for me," she admitted. "It makes me feel bad…and weak."

"Katara, you're not weak; you're the strongest person I know. And you shouldn't feel bad. I didn't help you just because you needed help; I did it because I wanted to help. And I'm sorry I was so rude to you earlier," Aang apologized. "I shouldn't have been so mean, but it's hard to help you when you won't let me."

"I'm sorry. But I'm used to doing things on my own; ever since I was a little girl, I've learned to do things on my own," Katara replied, meeting his gaze.

"That doesn't mean you should keep everything bottled up inside," Aang pointed out. "It can't be good for you."

Katara shrugged. "I've gotten used to it."

"But still, you shouldn't do everything on your own. You have friends who are more than willing to help. None of us are going to think you're weak just because you asked for our help."

Katara didn't say anything but merely threw her arms around him. "Thank you," came her muffled response.

Aang just chuckled and returned the gesture. "You know, sometimes it's hard to imagine you and Sokka are related. When Sokka broke his leg, he was the exact opposite; we had to do everything for him, remember?"

Katara just nodded against him and Aang had to resist urge to laugh when he felt her hair brush against him.

They lapsed into silence after that. For the first time, Katara noticed how tired she was. It hadn't been easy work hobbling around the house to get things done and her day had simply gone from bad to worse, but in Aang's arms, none of that seemed to matter. She felt warm, safe, and, suddenly, incredibly drowsy. She was a lot happier in the few minutes she spent wrapped in his embrace than she had felt all day. The simple gesture seemed to outweigh all the things had had gone wrong that day and she was grateful that he had reminded her that she wasn't weak and that her friends would always help her. She had always known that, she supposed, but a part of her had just forgotten it.

"Katara?"

She looked up to find Aang smiling at her. "Yeah?" she asked, sleepily.

"Are you feeling better?"

She smiled and nodded, closing her eyes and resting her head on his chest. The rhythmic sound of his heartbeat lulled her to sleep in no time and they stayed like that for a while. The sun had almost completely set before Aang had the presence of mind to make _something_ for dinner before Sokka came home and started complaining. But Katara woke up the instant he stirred.

"Don't go," she murmured, still half- asleep.

"But Sokka will be here soon," Aang began, protesting weakly. "And he'll be hungry, like he always is and…"

But Katara wasn't really paying attention. Shivering a little in the cool spring breeze that was drifting in through the open windows, she curled up next to him and wrapped her arms around him, before letting sleep claim her again.

On second thought, who cares about Sokka? Aang thought. He knew the warrior would be upset when he came home to find nothing but, really, if Katara wanted him to stay with her, who was he to argue with that? And as Katara snuggled closer and he wrapped his arms around her, Sokka's reaction (which would probably involve some sort of lecture on not having dinner ready and being mushy with his sister in front of him) was the furthest thing from his mind.

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_Thanks for reading and thanks for all the reviews I've gotten so far. You're all so wonderful! :)_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	83. A Mother's Advice

_A/N: I know I haven't updated in over a week, but I've been really busy with work and stuff and as usual, it took me a while to get write this and post it. All credit for this one goes to ATHPluver who sent me this request nearly a month ago (sorry for the super long wait). I hope it's decent. Enjoy! ^^_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender or Avatar: The Legend of Korra_

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**LXXXIII. A Mother's Advice**

"_A mother is one to whom you hurry when you are troubled_."

~ Emily Dickinson

"Boys are no fun."

The simple statement, uttered with an air of certainty characterized by experts, had Katara looking at her daughter with a quizzical expression on her face. Kya was staring out the window wistfully, her gaze fixed on the cluster of trees in the distance and a bored expression plastered on her face. Aang had taken Bumi and Tenzin out for the day since they were bored inside and, being sick, Kya was forced to stay home. Aang had pointed out it was the perfect time for her to spend with her mother, but Kya always spent time with Katara. Though she loved her mother and spending time with her, she would have rather preferred being with her brothers and father. It was a beautiful spring day and everything seemed to be mocking her beyond the open windows. The grass looked greener than ever and the sun seemed to make everything sparkle in its soft golden light. Somewhere in the treetops, the birds were singing and every now and then some woodland animal would venture out of the woods with its companions and proceed to taunt her as it played with its friends within her line of vision. Kya just sighed and tore her gaze from the window.

"Being sick is no fun either." She muttered.

"No one asked you to waterbend in the rain until you caught a cold," Katara pointed out, laughing.

"Haven't you ever done that?" Kya wondered, glancing at her mother.

Katara nodded. "Lots of times, actually."

"And did you ever get sick?"

"Yes."

Kya grinned. "So what did you do when you had to stay inside?"

Katara shrugged. "I don't know. Your father usually stayed with me."

"Why?"

"He was sick himself half the time," Katara chuckled. "And the other half, he just stayed to keep me company."

Kya just smiled. "How did you meet Dad?"

"Haven't you heard that story a million times by now?" her mother asked.

Kya nodded. "Yeah, but so what?"

Katara sighed. "Your uncle and I were fishing and I got mad at him and yelled at him. My waterbending was so out of control then, it cracked the ice, and we found the iceberg your father was in. You know the rest."

"How old were you when you met him?"

Katara just closed the book she was reading and gave Kya a puzzled glance. "Why so many questions?"

Kya shrugged and fiddled with a lock of her hair. "I'm just curious, that's all. So, how old were you when you met Dad."

"Fourteen."

"And how old were you when you fell in love with him?"

"Fourteen."

"Oh." She was thoughtful for a moment before shifting slightly and moving from her place by the window to the settee by her mother. "Mom, how did you know you loved Dad?"

"Is there a boy I don't know about?" Katara teased.

"No," was the stammered response but Kya's faint blush hinted that there was more the young waterbender was telling her mother.

Katara just sighed. "I guess I always loved him but I didn't realize until…"

Kya just leaned forward eagerly and waited. Katara hadn't really told her children about what had happened in the crystal catacombs underneath Ba Sing Se when Azula had hurt Aang. She didn't really mind telling Kya but even after all these years it was a sensitive subject and she didn't exactly want her children to know their father had nearly died and been brought back to life. Aang had always made it a point to tell them Katara had saved him but Katara knew for a fact the children didn't know he meant literally.

"You were saying?" Kya prompted.

"Until your father nearly died," Katara admitted.

"You've mentioned that before. What exactly happened?"

"You really want to know?"

Kya nodded.

"This part out of all our adventures doesn't exactly have a happy ending."

Kya rolled her eyes. "I'm twelve, Mom. I think I can handle a sad story. I know not everything in life ends happily."

Katara sighed and placed her book to the side. "You know most of the story, actually. Your father and I just left out parts we didn't want you and your brothers to hear because you were probably too little to understand or something like that. We had all split up after telling the Earth King about the solar eclipse. Your dad went to the Eastern Air Temple to meet a guru and your uncle went to Chameleon Bay to meet your grandfather. I stayed in Ba Sing Se to talk to the generals. According to your Uncle, your Dad came back for him really quickly and they headed for Ba Sing Se as fast as they could."

"Why?" Kya wondered.

"I don't know to what extent this is true, but apparently your father saw me in trouble and came to get Sokka as fast as he could."

"What kind of trouble?" Kya wondered. "You and Dad are the greatest benders I know."

"We're still just regular people, Kya. We're not invincible; no one is. Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee had captured your aunt and her warriors, and had infiltrated the city pretending to be the Kyoshi warriors but I didn't know that, so when I went to warn the king about Zuko being in the city…"

"But how could you not know it was someone pretending to be Aunt Suki?" Kya protested. "She was your friend."

Katara just smiled. "Would you know someone if you'd only seen them twice before and not really interacted with them? Your uncle spent more time with her than I had; he was training with her nearly every day after we first met her, but I usually spent my time getting supplies and working on my waterbending or trying to keep your dad out of trouble. When we met her again, we had to trek across the Serpent's Pass and I was more focused on getting across in one piece than trying to make friends with her. Besides, I figured there'd be plenty of time for that later, but she went back to Full Moon Bay and we didn't see her again until Sokka rescued her from the Boiling Rock. It was only after she started travelling with us that I really got to know her. I'm sure if your uncle had been with me when I went to warn the Earth King, he'd have known in an instant that the so called Kyoshi warriors were imposters, but he never saw them because he left to see your grandfather beforehand."

"So what did they do to you?"

"Locked me up. I was imprisoned in the catacombs beneath the city and Zuko joined me a little while later. After some time, your father came to rescue me and we were going to help Sokka and Toph, but before we could Azula attacked us. At first, it wasn't too bad because we only had to worry about Azula, but then Zuko and the Dai Lee joined. We were badly outnumbered, but somehow, we managed to hold out until…"

"Until?" Kya prodded.

Her mother suddenly had a faraway look in her eyes and for a moment, it seemed as if she was a girl again, not that she was all that old now.

"Mom?" Kya asked tentatively, hoping she wasn't ruining a moment or something.

"What?" Katara seemed to snap out of her reverie and shook her head to clear her thoughts. "Oh, sorry. I guess I just got lost in thought for a moment. Anyway, we were doing okay, I guess, until Azula shot your father with lightning. He was in the Avatar State, so technically, he…died."

Kya gasped, her eyes wide with surprise and her face set in an expression of horror. "But…how? I thought…"

"Like I said, no one, not even the Avatar, is invincible. Luckily, I had the water Master Pakku had given me from the spirit oasis and it was able to bring your dad back. If it hadn't been for that, I don't know what we would have done."

Kya suddenly looked somber. "So, if it hadn't worked…what do you think would have happened?"

"Hard to say," Katara admitted. "The war may have lasted a couple of generations longer, but I think the Fire Nation would have met resistance somewhere. The rest of us knew we were going to fight if your dad died, but he didn't and we won the war, so don't waste your time worrying about what might have happened." She smiled, but Kya didn't return the gesture. She just drew up her knees and wrapped her arms around them.

"Mom, do you think you would have gotten married even if…?"

Katara shrugged. "I don't know. Sometimes when I ask myself that question now, I automatically say no because I love your dad but back then, even though I knew I was in love, I was afraid of admitting it. And I was so young too; I think if he had died, I might have sworn off of love forever. Or maybe not; it's hard to say. But things didn't turn out that way, so why waste our time worrying about what might have happened?"

"I guess," Kya acquiesced. She sighed. "Is love always so complicated?"

"So there is a boy?" Katara said, teasing her daughter again.

"Mom," Kya whined. "There is no…" She trailed off when she noticed Katara's amused expression and her raised eyebrow. Kya blushed slightly. "Okay, so maybe there is. But…"

"What?"

Kya shrugged. "I don't know. How do you know you're in love? Am I even old enough to be in love?"

"You'll know, Kya, trust me. And you're never too young to be in love. How deep your love is, is a different question but love has nothing to do with age."

"But I'm younger than him."

"So what?" Katara demanded. "Your dad is younger than me by two years. Although technically, he was frozen in that iceberg for a hundred years so I'd actually be ninety eight years younger than him, but either way age doesn't matter."

"So, should I tell him I like him?" Kya wondered.

"There's no harm in it," Katara said. "It might just be a crush or you might actually fall in love with him, but it wouldn't hurt to let the boy know."

"You think so?"

Katara nodded, smiling a bit as she did so. "There are a lot of things I wish I could do over in my life, Kya. Telling your father how I felt about him was one of those things. If I could go back in time and change things, I'd have told him I loved him sooner. When your dad went to fight the Firelord, I was scared I'd never get the chance to tell him because one of us wouldn't make it. Maybe telling him the truth would have complicated things, but sometimes that's better than keeping the secret to yourself until you're forced to reveal it. I used to get nightmares just thinking maybe I'd end up telling your dad the truth as one of us was slowly dying."

Kya shuddered. "That's awful."

Katara nodded. "That's why you should tell this boy if you really like him. People can be complete idiots sometimes," she laughed. "He might like you but think you hate him, so letting him know is harmless. The worst that can happen is that he says he doesn't like you, but if he doesn't then he's obviously an idiot who can't see what a beautiful, smart young girl you are. And you're young, so I wouldn't worry too much about boys. I'm sure you'll have plenty of boys chasing after you in a year or so anyway."

Kya giggled. "You really think so?"

Katara chuckled. "Absolutely. So, is this boy the one you made friends with on Kyoshi?"

Kya nodded, fiddling with a lock of her hair. "Yeah."

"I thought so," Katara said, smiling. "Your uncle keeps sending me letters about him."

Kya buried her face in her hands. "How embarrassing," she exclaimed. "He probably tells Uncle Sokka he thinks I'm weird or something like that. There's no way I can tell him I like him."

"Would it help if I told you he keeps asking Uncle Sokka about you?" Katara asked, her cerulean eyes twinkling. Kya's head snapped up and she gaped at her mother.

"He asks about me?"

"Yeah. He even wrote you a letter," Katara replied, pointing to an unopened piece of parchment on the table. "It came by hawk this morning."

Kya just hurriedly opened the letter and read it, a smile slowly forming on her face. "I think I'll write a letter back," she said, once she had finished reading it. "Thanks again for your advice, Mom."

Katara just shook her head and laughed. "It's hardly advice, Kya, but you're welcome."

At that moment, the front door burst open and Aang walked in with Tenzin and Bumi trailing close behind, commenting on their fun outing.

"Dad," Kya cried, rushing to give her father a hug while her younger brothers tried telling their mother everything they had done.

"Good to see you too, Kya," Aang chuckled, returning the gesture.

"I know I don't say this often, but you're the best dad ever," the young waterbender said, smiling up at the airbender.

"Thank you?" was her father's confused response. He gave Katara a puzzled look and she stifled a laugh before turning her attention back to Bumi and Tenzin who were in the midst of a tale. Their enthusiasm and the tales they narrated to Katara were no doubt designed to make their older sister jealous, but Kya paid no attention to them.

"Did you do anything interesting?" Aang asked his daughter, hoping she had found a suitable distraction from her cold.

"Yeah. Mom and I talked. She told me some interesting stuff and I completely forgot I was sick until now." She sneezed as if to prove her point and her father laughed.

"So would any of this interesting stuff explain why I'm suddenly the best dad ever?"

Kya nodded.

"And what exactly did I do to get that honor?"

"Nothing, really. Just being around," Kya replied. Aang nodded, but really, he hadn't the faintest idea what Kya was talking about. He was even more puzzled when Kya walked off, mentioning something about writing a letter and Sokka. Katara had to explain the situation before he understood.

"They grow up so fast, don't they?" She wondered, watching Kya disappear as Tenzin and Bumi started a new game of sorts.

"It's hard to already imagine her worried about love," Aang admitted.

"What's so hard to imagine?" Katara demanded, smirking playfully at him. "You were worried about love at her age too, remember?"

Aang grinned. "With good reason too," he returned, teasing her.

Katara just shook her head, but she was smiling.

"You know," the waterbender mused, a thoughtful expression on her face. "I think I actually gave Kya useful advice for once."

"What do you mean?" Aang wondered.

"Well, I never asked my mother for much advice on love," she admitted. "I was too young and too uninterested in it to really care, so when Kya asked me all these questions, I was honestly not sure what to tell her. But, I think whatever advice I gave her was good enough. At least, I hope it was."

"I'm sure it was," Aang replied, smiling at her. "Besides, you always give good advice."

"I'm not so sure about that," she replied, modestly. "But, I did tell her what I thought she should do and hopefully, she won't make the same mistakes I did."

"What mistakes?"

"Stupid ones, like not telling you how I felt sooner and stuff like that."

"Well, everything worked out well in the end, didn't it?" he asked, grinning and wrapping an arm around her.

Katara nodded and gave him a quick kiss. "It did," she agreed, smiling as her cerulean eyes twinkled brightly. Sometimes, reminiscing about what had happened in the crystal catacombs, on Ember Island, and some of the more painful memories brought back thoughts and feelings they had both long ago repressed. But now, neither Aang nor Katara were worried about what life had in store for them, because every time they thought about what the future would be like without the other, they were reminded that they didn't need to dwell on such depressing thoughts, and as long as they had each other, their family, and their friends, there wasn't any need to worry at all.

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_Thanks for reading and thanks for all the reviews I've gotten so far. I'm still working on a couple of requests from PandaLily22, maizeandbluekid, and a few others, so hopefully I can have those up soon. :) Thanks for being so patient! You guys are amazing! ^^_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	84. Ember Island Revisited

_A/N: So instead of posting my usual repetitive author's note about what a terrible person I am for not having this request up sooner, I thought I'd just skip that part and move on. All credit for this chapter goes to PandaLily22, who wanted a oneshot with Aang, Katara, and their kids. Not much to say, other than I hope this is decent and the characters aren't too OOC. Enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own either ATLA or TLOK_

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**LXXXIV. Ember Island Revisited**

_"When you look at your life, the greatest happinesses are family happinesses." _

~Joyce Brothers

Katara couldn't say she was sorry to be here. Even if Ember Island didn't exactly hold the best of memories for either her or Aang, things were certainly different now. For once, they were actually on vacation; this wasn't one of those breaks they had where some council promised not to disturb them and invariably did. They were far away from councils and meetings and had come to the island for the sole purpose of spending time with each other and their children, forging new memories, and simply relaxing. Well, Katara was relaxing. Aang had the unfortunate (or perhaps fortunate) task of helping his children with their bending. It amused Katara to no end that her children were all so eager to learn. She thought once Kya had turned five, she'd have reached the stage where lessons were boring. But the young waterbender was six now, and she seemed every bit as interested in waterbending as she had been when she discovered she could bend. Her enthusiasm seemed to be rubbing off on her brothers too because they always seemed ready to practice. Katara had never been more thankful her children were always ready to learn, but privately she didn't know how long this phase would last. She was sure once Kya turned ten, practicing bending would be deemed "uncool" and become more of a chore than anything else. Or perhaps not. She really couldn't say. But in any case, she was determined to make the most of their vacation and that meant not dwelling on the future and enjoying the present.

Tenzin broke off his practice and hurried back to Katara's side, taking a seat beside her and finishing the remnants of his lunch. The picnic they had arranged had been temporarily abandoned in favor of some bending practice, but Katara didn't really mind. It gave her time to catch up with a good book. The object almost felt foreign in her hands; she couldn't recall the last time she'd held one or the last time she'd read for pleasure. It was a little hard to read with Tenzin leaning over her to see what she was reading (and demanding why there weren't any pictures) but it still beat reading proposals or letters or even fan mail. She'd have thought with their marriage, Aang would stop receiving letters from obsessed fan girls, but the amount seemed to double oddly enough. It didn't bother her much anyway. Aang hardly ever bothered to open the letters and when he did, it was when he was in a bad mood (which wasn't very often) and needed a good laugh.

"Mama, do you want to play with me?" Tenzin asked, suddenly. "Dad's too busy helping Kya and Bumi."

Katara closed her book and whispered something to her son, smiling mischievously. "Go tell your siblings," she instructed, laughing to herself. Tenzin beamed and scurried off to whisper to his siblings what his mother had told him. Aang gave Katara an inquiring look when he noticed the three children huddled around each other and laughing at something she had told them, but the young mother pretended to be absorbed in her book and took no notice of him. By the time Aang decided to ask her outright, it was too late. His children had already made a beeline for him, tackling him to the ground and mercilessly tickling him. Aang vowed revenge on his wife the moment he was able to escape his three children.

Admittedly, it should have been easy to escape, but with three rambunctious children, it was anything but. Aang honestly had no idea how long he spent trying to get his children to stop tickling him, but when they did, they began chasing him around the beach. If he really wanted to, he knew he could have gotten away, but it was so much more fun to simply let the children catch up with him. He spent a good long while playing with them like that, letting them chase him around the beach, splash him with water, tackle him with hugs and kisses, before all four of them fell back on the sand laughing to themselves.

"Can we do it again?" Tenzin pleaded.

"Actually, I have a better idea," Aang said, his eyes twinkling. "Listen carefully."

The three children eagerly listened and if Katara had been watching, she'd have noticed the devious smiles on all their faces, but she had actually gotten to a particularly interesting part of her book and was too absorbed in it to notice the sphere of water that was slowly collecting over her. Without warning, her book suddenly flew out of her hands, snapping shut and landing a few feet away. Before she could get it, she was drenched in water. She hardly had a moment to take in what had happened before she was sent hurtling through the air.

"Aang," she screeched as the distance between her and the sandy beach increased. "Stop!"

Aang just grinned and abruptly the air currents disappeared. Katara shrieked as she started falling and vaguely heard the three children giggling in the background. If she wasn't busy concocting some form of punishment for her husband and children, she'd have noticed the decreasing distance in her descent and prepared herself for the impact. But Aang caught her in his arms before she hit the ground.

"What was that for?" Katara demanded, wrapping her arms around his neck as if he might drop her any second. Her wet hair was plastered to her back, her clothes were drenched, and she looked angry, but the twinkle in her eyes said otherwise. She shot him a playful glare. "Are you trying to kill me?"

"Not at all," Aang replied, grinning. "But you know what they say: 'revenge is a dish best served cold.'"

"I don't know what you're talking about."

He only smiled wider. "I think you do."

The children giggled.

"So now that I finally have you, what should I do with you?" Aang wondered, grinning mischievously.

"How about putting me down, for starters?" Katara wondered. Aang just shook his head, tightening his grip on her.

"Nah, I think I'll enjoy getting revenge on you before I do that," he teased. He turned to their children. "What should I do to your mom?"

Kya giggled. "Bury her in the sand."

"Throw her in the water," Bumi suggested, laughing.

"Tickle her feet with a feather," Tenzin cried, jumping up and down.

Aang laughed. "On second thought, maybe I'll just leave you to them. I like their plan a lot better than mine."

Katara's eyes narrowed. "You wouldn't dare."

"Try me."

"Aang," she whined. "You can't leave me to them. They'll tickle me to death."

"Sorry, Katara," he sang. He planted a gentle kiss on her forehead before depositing her gently on the sand. "You asked for it."

"Tickle Monster," Tenzin screeched, before diving for Katara and trying to tickle her.

"Tenzin, stop," she cried as she felt his tiny hands fly over her. She mentally cursed the speed of airbenders. It seemed like they were fast in everything, from airbending to tickling. The three year old just giggled and didn't let up until his mother managed to get a thin tendril of water to gently pull him away.

"A good little airbender always listens to his parents," she chided, playfully.

Kya giggled. "But we are," she said, earnestly. "We're listening to Dad."

Aang just smirked and Katara playfully stuck her tongue out at him.

"Dad, show Mom your new trick," Bumi pleaded. Aang winked and turned to the waterbender.

"Toph taught me some sandbending," he said, grinning. Without warning, the sand beneath Katara shifted and she yelped when she felt herself move involuntarily. The sand shifted in various directions and without quite knowing how, she found herself buried in the sand, just deep enough so that she couldn't move. Only her head and her feet were exposed.

"Oops. That wasn't supposed to happen."

"That's it," Katara growled, feigning indignation as she glared at the Avatar. "No dinner for you tonight. You're grounded."

"I'm not the one buried in sand," he teased.

"Just wait till I get out," she threatened. But as soon as she saw Aang holding a feather Kya had given him, all thoughts on revenge vanished and her eyes widened. "Hey, that's not fair. What I did does not warrant this type of torture."

"Yes it does," Aang teased, as he released her from the confines of her sandy prison and proceeded to mercilessly tickle her. Katara doubled over in laughter and Aang only let up when she was left gasping for breath. When she had finally settled down, she glanced at the three children and Aang.

"Who should I punish first?" she mused.

The three children shrieked and scattered, giggling all the while. Aang chuckled, watching them go, when Katara suddenly turned on him and tackled him to the ground, snatching the feather in his hand from him in the process.

"Now that I have you, what should I do with you?" she mocked.

"Should I be scared?" Aang wondered.

Katara nodded. "Should I kiss you senseless?" she whispered, grinning seductively. "Or should I tickle you until you're begging for mercy?"

"Preferably the first one, but knowing you, you won't."

The waterbender just smirked. "You know me so well," she teased as she began tickling him.

Aang honestly couldn't say how he managed to get away from Katara and he was convinced it was a miracle he managed to get away when their children joined in, but he couldn't deny it was fun. There was some simple, indescribable feeling in laughing and making others laugh and it felt so good to relax for once and act like kids even if he and Katara were older now and had a. A few passersby stopped to stare at the family, chasing each other on the sandy beach, playing in the water, or even just tickling each other to elicit giggles but Aang, Katara and their children didn't really notice. They were too busy having fun and too absorbed in their childlike play to really care. After all, during these moments, nothing else really mattered.

The warm afternoon faded into a pleasant evening and after a proper picnic underneath a multihued, twilit sky, the family ventured to watch a play at the theater. It was the first play the children had been to, and they found it enthralling. They spent the rest of the evening sitting between their parents with their eyes glued to the stage and although the play ended well past their bedtime, Aang and Katara allowed their children to stay up later than normal; after all, they would only be a kid once and if they couldn't enjoy their childhood, what use was there in being a child? Aang and Katara found the play enjoyable, but watching their children's expression proved far more entertaining than the actors on stage. The way their eyes would widen, or they'd all lean forward while holding their breath-it was all so adorable. It was a long play, but they managed to sit through the entire thing and understand it, which Aang found surprising given how young they all were. By the time they left the theater, the moon was high in the sky and the three children were already drowsy. Tenzin was more or less asleep in Aang's arms and Kya was desperately fighting off sleep. It didn't take long for Aang to locate Appa behind the theater and once his three children were in the saddle and he had told Appa to keep an eye on them, he wandered off to find Katara who had suddenly disappeared in the crowd.

He found her standing on an empty balcony, gazing out at the sea before them. High above, millions of stars twinkled erratically and a nearly full moon was making its slow journey across the sky. Aang just followed her gaze out to the horizon, where the darkened contours of the ocean met the sky, at which point both sea and sky seemed to blend together in a canvas of dark blues and blacks flecked with the light of the stars. Several stories below them, Aang could make out Appa resting on the sandy beach with all three of their children sleeping soundly in the spacious saddle and he smiled. He was about to ask Katara why she was out here all alone when it suddenly occurred to him that this had been the very same balcony they had been on the first time they had stayed on Ember Island. It had been this very balcony he had wandered out to and he was standing in the exact same spot (albeit a different position) he had been when he and Katara had had their talk. He wanted to ask her if there was a reason she was here, out on this very same balcony that didn't hold the best of memories for either of them, but she spoke before he could.

"I should have known better," she muttered.

"Huh?" was Aang's unintelligent response.

"The play," Katara sighed. "All those years ago; I don't think I was confused."

"Oh."

"I was scared," she admitted. "But not so confused…about how I felt."

Contrary to what her friends believed, Katara had never been all that oblivious to Aang's feelings towards her; it was written in his eyes how deeply he loved her and cared for her. Even now, she could see it. But it had scared her to no end when he'd confessed because the day of the comet was looming closer and there had been a good possibility that neither of them would have made it. But she honestly couldn't say why she'd told him she was confused, even all these years later. She had been scared, and confused, but her confusion had nothing to do with how she felt about him. And yet, she had still blurted it out and told him she had been confused when all she was really been feeling was this gnawing fear that threatened to consume her and a tiny bit of confusion.

"I'm sorry for what I said that day," Katara apologized. "I was scared you'd never come back and so I lied a little. The only thing I was confused about was why you'd picked me." She sighed again and looked down. "Sometimes, I wake up and still ask myself that question. Out of all the girls you could have picked, why me?"

Aang shrugged. "Why shouldn't I have picked you?"

"Well, I…I'm nothing special. I'm just Katara."

Aang looked thoughtful for a minute. "I guess if some other girl had rescued me from the iceberg, things would have been different. But should it really matter why _we're_ here? I love _you_, Katara, not someone else. Besides, I don't see why you find it so unbelievable. I'm still wondering how someone as amazing as you fell for a goofy kid like me."

Katara smiled. "You were a sweet, goofy kid. And you made it easy. And I'm sorry for getting gloomy all of a sudden. I just wanted to apologize."

"You didn't have to," Aang said, laughing. "I forgave you the day after you said it. Besides, I figured you either didn't mean it or you must've changed your mind."

"How?"

"You married me, didn't you?"

Katara laughed, nodding her head in assent.

"So what were you doing out here anyway?" Aang wondered.

"Thinking," the waterbender admitted. She lifted her eyes to meet his gaze. "I know this place doesn't exactly hold the best memories for either of us, but I want to change that. I want to make new memories."

"Then let's do it," the airbender replied, smiling and lacing his fingers with hers.

Katara nodded. "There's something I have to do first, though. Close your eyes." When Aang did as he was told, Katara leaned up and pressed her lips to his.

"I should have done that a long time ago," she said, softly.

Aang just grinned. "I wouldn't mind making more memories like that," he chuckled. "But all the memories we make this time are guaranteed to be better than anything we could have made in the past," he said as they walked out towards Appa.

"And why is that?" Katara wondered.

"Because we're together," he said, scooping her up and using his airbending to bring them on top of Appa. "And we have a family which makes it so much better."

Katara gazed fondly at the three sleeping children and Aang, and smiled. Ember Island would no longer remind her about that awful play or her conversation with Aang that night all those years ago. They'd forge new memories here, better ones, until all the bad memories were forgotten and ceased to exist. And with a family and with Aang, Katara found herself looking forward to it because as he said, family made everything so much better.

* * *

_Thanks for reading. Hope it was decent. And as always, a very special thank you to everyone who reviewed. You guys are awesome! :)_

_~ Cassie_

_P.S. Still working on requests that I'll have up ASAP. ^^_


	85. Together

_A/N: So I was going through the last couple of chapters for this collection, just making sure what requests I had done and what I still had to post, when I realized a lot of my chapters have been requests (26, in fact! :D). I loved writing them (so thanks to everyone who submitted them ^^) but I think I should start posting some of my own now and again too, because that little folder on my computer labeled 'unposted oneshots' is getting quite big! I know this isn't much of an excuse for not getting those other requests up, but I'm still working on them and, given my hectic schedule lately, I don't know when I'll get around to posting them. So I'm posting a completed oneshot that's been sitting around on my computer for a while and I'll work on those requests when I can. I'm sorry for making those who sent requests wait, but I promise I'll have them up as soon as I can. Thanks for being patient. (: I n the meantime, I hope this oneshot satisfies. Hope it's not too bad! Happy readings!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar :(_

* * *

**LXXXV. Together**

"_Whatever our souls are made of, his and mine are the same._"

~ Emily Bronte

Despite having spent decades surround by snow and ice and despite having adapted to the harsh, frigid temperature of the Poles, Pakku found it didn't do anything to lessen how cold he felt as he stumbled through the village. His age didn't help much either. Despite being quite fit and agile for someone his age, the cold seemed to pierce through him like knives. He wouldn't have been out if it had been up to him, but Katara hadn't come home yet and it was nearing their evening meal. Normally, even if she came home late, the others would have seen her around, but she had vanished without a trace leaving Pakku and Aang to look for her while Hakoda contemplated whether or not organizing and sending a search party was even worth it. Aang had searched the vast ice fields beyond the Southern Water Tribe, leaving Pakku to search the village and the surrounding areas. Though the Southern Water Tribe wasn't quite as big as its sister tribe, it had grown thanks largely in part to its reconstruction. It was at times like these the old waterbending master wished he possessed the ability to pinpoint someone based on their vibrations like that earthbender, Katara's friend with the funny name that he couldn't quite remember. It would certainly be easier than wandering along the shore looking for her, he reasoned.

He came to find Katara sitting on the edge of the ice bank and staring at the ocean waves that lapped gently against the icy shore with a thoughtful expression on her face. There were but a few people milling about in the area attempting to catch fish and suddenly, Pakku understood why the waterbender had come to this out of the way spot to be alone. It had been an hour since she had dismissed her waterbending class and since then, none had seen her or heard from her. Wordlessly, Pakku walked up to her and took a seat beside her, not really sure why he was involving himself with her problems at the present moment. He'd never really been able to project any other image than that of the strict waterbending master, but even if he wasn't used to showing it, he did have a softer side he'd learned to show a bit now and again. If Katara was surprised by his sudden appearance and his actions, her features didn't betray it.

Pakku just cleared his throat. "You haven't come home since you dismissed your class," he noted

Katara nodded. "I've been thinking."

"I see," he said, following her gaze and, finding nothing particularly interesting about either the ocean waves or the horizon which she was now staring at, turned his gaze to her and made small talk. "I hear Aang proposed to you finally."

She raised an eyebrow inquiringly at the last word but nodded. "He did."

"What was your answer?" Pakku wondered, not really sure why he was asking her. Katara herself had said it was no secret she was in love with the young Avatar.

"I…Aang knows my answer, but he made me promise I'd think about it before I replied."

"I see. Well, I hope you do think about it, regardless of your answer," Pakku said. "You hold more than his heart."

Katara looked puzzled. "What do you mean?"

Pakku sat a little straighter beside her. "Marriage isn't just the union of two hearts. It's the union of two lives. In a sense, your answer determines his future."

"But Aang's future is more or less already determined," the waterbender pointed out.

"In some cases, it is," the old master conceded. "But your answer will, no doubt, have a huge impact on him. Should you decline his offer, I wouldn't be too surprised if the next Avatar had too much to do to restore balance to the world."

"You really think if I say no, he'll neglect his duties?" Katara wondered.

"No," Pakku replied. "But I do think it would affect the effort he put into it."

"You do?"

Pakku nodded. "I loved your grandmother very much," he said, going off on what Katara thought was a tangent. "When she left the Northern Water Tribe all those years ago, I was heartbroken. At the time, I was in the final stages of becoming a master waterbender, but in the days after she left, I couldn't concentrate on it. I shirked practice and when I did make any attempt, it was only halfhearted and I spent a good long while contemplating what to do in the future. There was a time when I was quite convinced I would have to move to someplace else and start again or I'd end up as a vagabond. I was convinced there was nothing left for me in the future. It was probably only sheer luck that my logic hadn't deserted me and I decided to make something of myself. And somewhere along the way, I turned into the old sour puss I've been told I am." He paused, gauging Katara's reaction and continued. "I can't imagine Aang doing any of that if you say no, but I don't believe he'll be quite the same."

"I was never going to say no," Katara said softly, eyes downcast.

"I believe you," her grandfather said. "But perhaps, considering all the thinking you've done, you should tell Aang and not me."

"I did tell him. I've told him more times than I can remember and he still wants me to think about it. I'm afraid if I think too long, something will convince me to say no."

"I highly doubt that, but on the off chance you do, you're not absolved of your duties as his friend and waterbending master. Saying no doesn't mean you just walk out of his life."

"I don't understand," she said, thoroughly confused.

"When your grandmother left, I was a wreck. After I had pulled myself back together again, there wasn't a day that went by where I didn't wish I could see her again, even if it was for a moment, even if she'd be yelling at me for following the stringent rules of the Northern Tribe or being a misogynist or anything. Your answer won't change the way Aang feels about you. From what I've seen in the time you two have spent here, I don't think your answer would make him fall out of love with you."

"But isn't that like reopening old wounds? If I say no and keep visiting him, I don't think that'd be much help to him."

"Perhaps," Pakku admitted. "But something tells me he'd rather see you periodically and endure that pain than endure the pain of never seeing you at all."

"Maybe he can endure that, but I don't think I'll be able to. That's why I never bothered saying no. Somehow, I just can't."

Pakku was about to say something else when he was interrupted by the arrival of a certain airbender. He looked guilty for interrupting the conversation between the two waterbenders, but Pakku merely gave him a friendly smile (which wasn't becoming quite so rare anymore) and asked him what was wrong.

"You're needed in the village," the airbender said. "Something or other about a bending battle between a couple of your students."

"Ah." Instead of asking why the airbender couldn't deal with it, Pakku just stood up and walked back towards the village. Aang just took a seat beside Katara and followed her gaze out to the horizon where the sea and sky seemed to blend together so distinguishing one from the other was impossible. He wanted to talk to her, but somehow felt that speech would ruin the moment as she seemed lost deep in thought. She remained pensive for a few minutes longer before addressing him.

"Aang?"

"Yeah?"

"I thought about things like you said."

"And?"

She met his gaze, her expression completely serious. "What would you do if my answer was no?"

He gave her a small, sad smile. "What can I do?" He wondered. "I'm not going to force you into doing anything you don't want to, Katara."

"Aang, you know my answer; it hasn't changed since the day you asked me. But if I said no, would that get in the way?"

The airbender gave her a puzzled look. "Of what?"

"Everything," she replied, blowing a strand of hair out of her face. "You won't neglect your duties because I said no, will you? You'll find someone else and be happy, right?"

"I won't neglect my job, but I won't find someone else either. It wouldn't be fair to whoever that someone else might be if I was with them when I really love you."

Katara just remained silent.

"So, is your answer no?" Aang asked tentatively, steeling himself for her reply.

Katara's gaze flickered from the horizon line to him and her sapphire eyes were wide in shock and panic. For a moment, she debated whether or not she should freeze him to the ground so he wouldn't run away in sadness after mistaking their conversation for her rejection, but he made no move to leave.

"No," she replied, hastily. "I told you: my answer hasn't changed at all. I want to spend the rest of my life with you, but Master Pakku told me something I hadn't really thought about. I just wanted to know how drastically my answer would affect you."

Much to her relief, Aang chuckled. "I wouldn't be mad at you or neglect my duties," he promised, smiling at her. "But other than that, I can't really tell you how it would affect me. I don't know."

"And you never will," she stated, grinning.

"I guess not. But are you sure you thought about this? It'll be one crazy future and it'll probably be filled with work, travelling, and danger."

Katara rolled her eyes, smiling. "I think I can cope. As for the danger, it's nothing we're not used to."

"But are you sure you…?"

Katara cut him off with an unexpected question. "Can you give me back my heart?"

"What?" Aang asked, gazing at her with a confused expression on his face. Looking into his silver eyes, Katara suddenly wish she hadn't asked him that because her reason for doing so seemed silly and she couldn't believe the sudden mess she had gotten herself into. How was she going to explain this without sounding like an idiot?

"There's an old Water Tribe proverb that says love is the union of two hearts and once you have one it is nearly impossible to return it. As cheesy as it sounds, you sort of…have mine."

"O-oh," he stammered.

"And I want it back." She demanded, suddenly.

A faint blush graced his features and despite her worries, Katara couldn't help thinking about how adorable Aang looked at the moment. Even if he was older and more mature now, he was every bit the lovable, goofy airbender he had been.

"I… um….don't think I can…"

"See? You can't give it back," she stated, smugly. "And it's not just because you're incapable. You just don't want to."

"No," he managed. "I don't."

"Master Pakku said my answer determines your future, in way and I guess he was right. But you determine mine," she said simply and Aang was sure he was as red as a tomato at that point.

"What do you mean?"

"This is going to sound really cheesy, but somewhere along the way, I gave you my heart and if you leave thinking my answer is no or that you can't make me happy, or some other crazy thought, I'm as good as dead," Katara explained, meeting his gaze and berating herself for how stupid she sounded. "So you really only have two options: marry me or don't. But either way, like the saying says, once you have a heart, you can never really give it back."

"Um… so…why exactly did you bring that up?" Aang wondered.

"You can ask me the same question now or fifty years later, Aang, and you can tell me to think about it before I answer, but it won't change how I feel about you and…us. I've done my thinking; ever since we got our fortunes from Aunt Wu, I've been thinking."

Aang laughed shakily, remembering how he had eavesdropped on the conversation. Ever since then, he had been fantasizing about all the possibilities that could happen. But fantasy and reality were two different things after all.

"Do you remember when we met Jet?" Katara asked, fiddling with the end of her plait.

"Yeah," Aang replied. "I do. Why?" Even if he had felt some resentment towards the Freedom Fighter at first, all he felt now was regret for not being able to save him.

"I don't know why, but I really liked him," Katara admitted. "He was like the guys most girl dreams about: tall, dark, handsome. And he was fighting for a good cause."

Aang nodded. "But I'm not anyone of those things."

Katara just leaned over and gave him a quick kiss. "Be quiet, Aang. There is such a thing as being too modest, you know? And I beg to differ. But that's not the point. The point is, after we found out what he was really like, I promised myself I wasn't even going to think about boys until the war was over. But after we went to Aunt Wu, I couldn't stop thinking about it for some reason. And then when Azula hurt you in Ba Sing Se, something just clicked I guess. I wasn't really sure how it happened and I'm still not entirely sure, but somehow, in spite of everything I had done not to fall in love, I ended up falling in love with you. During all that time we were on the Fire Navy ship, I tried really hard to pull myself back together but without you, I just couldn't. I was a mess. I don't remember much because I've tried to block all the bad memories, but I think I cried myself to sleep every night because I was so scared you'd never get better and I could never tell you. So if you leave me now, I can't promise I won't end up like that again."

"You really think that would happen?"

"What, you leaving me or becoming like that?"

"Both," Aang answered.

"I don't know. I don't want to end up like that, but like I said, that's for you to decide," Katara said, smiling a little.

Aang looked thoughtful. "I never really thought about it, but Master Pakku was right. In a way, we are determining each other's futures."

Katara nodded. "Yeah we are, so maybe _you_ should have been the one thinking because…"

A sudden thought occurred to Aang and he unintentionally tuned her out as she continued on. He'd only dreamt of being with Katara ever since he had met her, so why was he questioning her answer when she was practically making all his dreams come true? If she had been thinking about things even before he'd proposed like she said, she must have known or at least guessed what the future would bring. In spite of all that, she was still willing to stay with him and Aang didn't really see why he kept questioning her decision. Katara wasn't stupid and if she could still love him enough to marry him in spite of how hectic and stressful their future was bound to be, who was he to argue with that?

"Katara?" He interrupted, trying to gain her attention but the waterbender was blissfully unaware he had called her name. "Katara?"

She was too busy talking to hear him. Aang didn't even know what she was rambling about anymore.

"…I know I'm really bad at explaining this but, I never needed to before and…"

She was cut off as a warm pair of lips crashed over hers and she jumped in surprise as she felt Aang's arms snake around her, pulling her closer. As always, her eyes fluttered shut, her mind went blank, and she was completely incapable of doing anything other than kissing him back.

When he pulled away, he was smiling. "You talk too much," he stated, matter-of-factly.

Katara flushed. "So I've been told."

"Come on," Aang said, helping her up. "We should probably get back."

"You mean you're not going to keep bugging me about not thinking before accepting your proposal?" She teased, as they set off.

Aang nodded. "I'm not going to bug you, so don't worry," he laughed.

"So all my rambling, which probably made no sense to you, actually convinced you?" Katara asked.

"I guess. And I understood it…I think."

Katara laughed. "If you say so."

By now, they had reached the house and Katara was about to open the door when Aang suddenly remember something. "By the way, Katara, you don't have to wear the necklace I made you if you don't want to. I know your mother's necklace means a lot to you."

Katara just pulled down the white lining of her parka to show him she was already wearing the betrothal necklace he had made for her and chuckled. "I thought you'd notice, airhead. I've been wearing it since the day you asked."

Aang looked surprised. "You have?"

She nodded, her cerulean eyes twinkling. "I told you; even thinking won't change how I feel about you." The airbender grinned and she leaned in to give him another kiss and that familiar feeling of weightlessness took over again. And, despite their current location, she didn't care if the other villagers or even her own family saw her kissing the Avatar on her doorstep; things like that hardly mattered now anyway because she and Aang would finally be together.

* * *

"Sokka," Hakoda said, helping Kanna set the last of the dinner on the table. "Why don't you go bring in some firewood? The fire's practically dying."

Sokka nodded, giving his fiancé a quick kiss before getting ready to head out.

"Have you seen Aang and Katara?" Suki wondered, handing Sokka his parka.

"Nope," the warrior replied. "But I don't really want to know what they're up to." He slipped into his boots and rushed out the front door nearly colliding with the kissing couple.

"Found them," Sokka hollered, smirking at the two before walking to the side of the house to collect some firewood. "You really shouldn't be doing that in front of the entire tribe," he told them, ambling back towards them. "And Aang, I'd rather you refrain from kissing my baby sister in front of me."

"You're so immature, Sokka," Katara said, as the three ducked into the house. "You do stuff like that all the time with Suki in front of me."

"Well, she's only here for a week and then she has to go back to Kyoshi, so I have an excuse," her brother said.

The waterbender just rolled her eyes and hung up her parka. "That's not an excuse," she said, heading towards the kitchen to help her grandmother. "And be nice to your new brother."

Sokka just gaped at them. "You're engaged?"

Katara nodded simply.

"You can't be," Sokka hissed in a whisper. Katara just showed him the necklace she was wearing and Sokka stuck his tongue out. "Copycat."

"How am I a copycat?" Katara demanded.

"You're only engaged because I am."

"I wouldn't have asked her now if you…" Aang began apologetically, but Katara cut him off.

"Don't apologize, Aang. Sokka's just being unreasonable. He hasn't eaten yet."

Aang chuckled.

"And Sokka, it's not like Aang and I are going to get married on the same day you and Suki are, so stop acting like a five year old," Katara said.

Sokka sighed. "Fine." But then, his demeanor changed completely. "Hey Aang, I was thinking, maybe I should plan a party for you like I did for Zuko."

"That's okay, Sokka," Aang replied, hastily. "You don't have to."

"Aw, come on, it'll be fun."

"Sokka, you brought cactus juice to Zuko's party. Do I need to remind you what happened?"

"I'm just saying," Sokka said, as he dumped some firewood in the hearth. "A party is just what you need."

"No parties, Sokka," Katara called from the kitchen.

"See?" Sokka whispered. "You can't let Katara walk all over you when you're married."

"I'd still rather not have a party," Aang said.

"Come on, lover boy. You know you want to."

"Sokka, Zuko was so drunk at the party you threw for him, he was talking to inanimate objects like they were Mai. And Toph destroyed the palace gardens. We don't want a repeat of that."

"Then just keep Katara away from the drinks," Sokka offered, nonchalantly.

"I heard that," his sister shouted.

"No parties, Sokka."

"How about a…?"

"No."

"Not even a…?"

"No."

"You guys are no fun," Sokka said, sliding into his place at the dinner table as Master Pakku entered the room. For some reason, Kanna had cooked a feast and used the fanciest porcelain she could find. It wasn't until Sokka realized the little feast was celebrating the two engagements that he understood why there was so much food.

"What's this?" Pakku asked, taking a sip of the drink everyone had been served.

Hakoda shrugged. "I'm not sure, but it tastes funny."

"Wait," Sokka screeched, noticing the bottle looked eerily like one he had been saving for a special occasion. "Where did you get that?"

"It was in the kitchen," Kanna answered, as she finished her glass. "Tastes a bit odd."

Katara and Suki simultaneously reached for their glasses noticing Hakoda, Kanna, and Pakku had already finished theirs and prepared to try it.

"Don't drink that," Sokka cried and both girls shot him a confused look.

Aang just sniffed the contents of the glass and groaned. "Sokka, please tell me this isn't cactus juice."

Sokka could only nod miserably as the cactus juice began working its magic.

* * *

_Thanks for reading and as always, thanks to everyone who reviewed! Readers and reviewers are a writer's best friend! :)_

_~Cassie_


	86. The Best Medicine

_A/N: I finally got around to posting this oneshot which, like most of the other requests I've posted lately, is long overdue (sorry). Thanks to Maizeandbluekid who sent me a detailed request which I probably did no justice to (although I really hope I did ^^). I had this done a few days ago, but I spent a lot of time editing and changing it because I wasn't really satisfied with it. I still feel like it's lacking in something (not quite sure what, though), but I decided to post anyway it because if it was up to me, it'd be ages before I felt satisfied with it and I'd probably end up rewriting it multiple times. So anyway, I hope this is decent and the characters aren't too OOC. Happy Readings! :)_

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything._

* * *

**LXXXVI. The Best Medicine**

"_Laugh as much as you breathe and love as long as you live._"

~ Unknown

Aang and Katara stumbled into the house, tired yet grateful that they had spent the entire day together. Since the end of the war, both of them had attended countless meetings in stuffy chambers with officials who seemed to forget that, while they had restored balance to the world, they were still just a group of teenagers who needed to relax every now and then. It had been Aang's idea to take Katara out and she was immensely grateful for it. Everyone had been under a lot of stress lately and breaks were hard to come by. So when Aang had taken the day off and suggested they spend it together doing whatever she wanted, Katara had jumped at the chance. To put it simply, it had been a wonderful day. They had practiced waterbending (which really meant they had started practicing and ended up having a water fight), had gone walking through the city, looked at several shops, eaten at a restaurant, and even found a nice park to have an evening picnic in. By the time they had decided to head home, their feet had already started aching and now that they were actually back in their house, they were sure the soles of their shoes had been worn through. Seeing Katara smile and look so happy, though, made Aang feel like the pain from his feet was worth it.

"My feet are so sore," Katara said, falling back against the bed they shared. "I feel like they could fall off."

Aang hummed in agreement, leaning back and staring up at the cracks in the ceiling. It was too quiet in the house without Toph, Sokka and Suki, but the trio had left a note saying they'd gone out and wouldn't return until late at night.

"You'd think after all the travelling we did, our feet would get used to walking," the waterbender chuckled. "But I guess not."

Aang propped himself up on his elbows and glanced down at the waterbender. "Um…I could give you a foot massage…if you want," he said, shyly. He didn't even know why he had suggested it because he had never really tried it, but he'd seen it done before and from what he'd been told, they were just the thing to alleviate sore feet. He didn't think Katara would let him, but he was quite surprised when she repositioned herself so she was leaning against the headboard and placed her feet in front of him as a sign of her consent. He blinked and suddenly burst out laughing. Of all the things he had signed himself up for, this had to be the craziest; he knew next to nothing about giving massages, but he supposed it didn't really matter as long as the person on the receiving end felt better.

Katara arched an eyebrow. "Are you laughing at my feet?"

"No," the airbender said. "I wasn't."

"Oh."

"You have small feet," he noted, not really sure why they were analyzing her feet. Before he could stop himself, he blurted out one more sentence. "They're cute."

Katara blushed. "Um…thank you?" she replied, not sure what to say. But then she realized something. "I have small feet?"

"What's wrong with small feet?"

"Nothing, but they're not all that small."

Aang just shrugged and the two lapsed into silence as Aang massaged her feet. Katara was surprised to discover he was actually quite good at it and that her feet were feeling much better. So she just relaxed and thought about what other hidden talents the airbender might have.

She didn't have long to ponder, because suddenly she felt Aang's fingers brush over the sensitive region of the soles of her feet and she drew her knees up, jerking her feet back and giggling. Aang looked taken aback for a moment but quickly regained his composure.

"Is something wrong?"

Katara looked hesitant for a moment, but then answered anyway. "No, it's just that I'm kind of ticklish," she admitted looking down, slightly embarrassed.

"Really?"

She nodded, stretching her feet out. "Yeah, I…" The waterbender broke off noticing the mischievous grin on the Avatar's face. "Why are you smiling at me like that?"

"Oh, I was smiling?" he asked, grinning wider. Katara watched him warily, suddenly feeling nervous. She knew that smile all too well. It was the smile Aang wore whenever he pulled pranks on Sokka. Without quite knowing how, she found her feet locked in a viselike grip and Aang set to mercilessly tickling them. It was as if he was tickling her with a feather. At first, Katara was laughing too hard to be able to do much of anything, but when she finally regained control of herself, she desperately tried to free herself from the torture-like tickle session the airbender was inflicting upon her. After a while, however, Katara just gave up and let Aang have his fun. She couldn't say she was angry at him because Sokka had often done the same thing to her when they had been little. He used to chase her around the house and try to tickle her before she got away and before their mother put a stop to their play so they wouldn't get hurt. Of course, he had only played with her like that when they had both been very little and when playing with your siblings wasn't deemed 'uncool', so it had been quite a while since she had laughed so hard she could barely breathe. Yet, despite her lack of oxygen at the current moment, the airbender didn't let up until Katara was laughing so hard, she had fallen off the bed from all her squirming. By then, he was genuinely worried and alarmed.

"Are you okay?" he asked, helping her up.

"Fine," she gasped, still laughing. She was smiling so much, her face hurt and she felt like she'd been laughing forever, though Aang had probably only made her laugh like that for all of two minutes. When her breathing had evened out, she smiled and gave the airbender a quick kiss. "I haven't laughed like that in ages. Thank you."

"So you're not mad at me?" Aang clarified.

"Not at all," she replied and the airbender gave an audible sigh of relief. "You shouldn't have done that though."

The airbender suddenly looked amused. "Why not?"

"Because, while you were busy torturing me, I…"

"Torture?" the airbender interrupted.

She nodded and continued. "I had plenty of time to think of revenge." And without warning, she lunged forward, catching the young Avatar off guard and proceeded to return the favor.

"Katara…stop," Aang gasped between laughs, as Katara tickled him. The waterbender, however, pretended not to hear his plea and continued, her fingers flying over him and making Aang laugh until he turned red. When he finally had the presence of mind to free himself, he summoned the gentle current of air that separated just far enough for him to break free and turn the tables on her. Without quite knowing how, Katara found her back pressed against the headboard of the bed and Aang was smiling that same mischievous grin again.

"You shouldn't have done that," he mocked, taunting her and, in spite of the nervous feeling rearing up within her, Katara laughed.

"How else was I supposed to get revenge?" she demanded, giggling.

Aang just shrugged.

Katara doubled over in laughter. "You should have seen yourself. You were as red as a tomato. It was hilarious."

"I'm sure it was," Aang remarked. "But two can play this game."

She didn't even have a moment to ask him what his intentions were (though she had a fairly good idea what he was going to do) before his fingers were flying over her skin, making her laugh so loudly their neighbors might have heard the sound. He seemed to know all her weak spots and wasted no time in attacking them, making the waterbender shriek with laughter, her voice rising nearly an octave. Katara had never been more thankful the others weren't in the house because she was sure she and Aang would have given the others a splitting headache and all the laughing was probably loud enough to make anyone deaf. She was sure Toph would have been driven insane by all the vibrations she and Aang were emitting, but even that didn't really make her want to stop their little playful fight.

Neither one of them knew how long they spent trying to evade or tickle the other, but it was fun to just laugh and let loose for once. With all the work everyone had been doing, there hadn't really been much time for letting loose, so now that the two had the opportunity, they planned on making the most of it, even if it meant acting like three year olds and tickling each other just to elicit a laugh.

"Please, stop," Katara cried, clutching her sides and shaking her head as the airbender continued tickling her. She was laughing so hard, her eyes were watering and she could barely move.

"This is payback," he sang. He'd have to teach her a lesson before letting her tickle him again. He'd wasn't quite sure how, but he'd managed to keep how ticklish he was a secret and he intended to keep it that way. If Katara knew just how ticklish he really was, he knew he'd been in big trouble.

"Aang," she shrieked, squirming away from his touch. "Stop!"

Miraculously, the airbender did as he was told, but he didn't tell the waterbender he had let up because he was tiring, not because she asked. He just smiled and glanced at Katara and when their gazes met, they descended into another fit of laughter.

"Don't you dare do that again," Katara said, falling back on the bed once they were both worn out. Her voice was hoarse from all her laughing and Aang just smiled tiredly. "I don't think I can breathe."

Aang just grinned and flopped down beside her. "Sorry," he said, giving her a chaste kiss. "Better?"

Her breath hitched. "No, you make it worse." But she was smiling.

"Sorry," Aang apologized. "But you know what they say: laughter is the best medicine."

Katara just hummed in agreement, suddenly feeling rather tired. She yawned and rested her head on his shoulder.

"Have I ever told you how much I love you?" she asked, grinning up at him and disregarding the voice inside of her that was berating her for how banal she sounded.

The airbender feigned thoughtfulness for a minute before replying. "You might have."

Katara just shook her head smiling and Aang grinned.

"Well you know I love you," he said simply, and Katara giggled when he poked her. "And I like your laugh, too."

"I wish I could say the same, airhead," she retorted playfully, poking his side and earning an involuntary laugh from the young Avatar. Aang pretended to pout and Katara rolled her eyes, smiling all the while. "I was kidding, but you already knew that."

The airbender just smiled before turning his gaze up to the ceiling.

"It's strange," he said, suddenly. "But when I was younger, Monk Gyatso always used to say making others laugh was one of the nicest things a person could do and he always used to tell us that making some of the older monks smile was the best thing we, little airbenders could do. I never really realized how true that was until now."

"Well you know the old proverb: a little goes a long way. Sometimes, something as simple as a laugh is really all it takes to cheer someone up," Katara murmured, closing her eyes and trying not to fall asleep.

"I guess so," Aang replied.

"It cheers me up," Katara offered, without opening her eyes. "Laughing is contagious, so whenever someone laughs, it always puts me in a better mood. That's why you shouldn't ever change. It's hard to stay mad at you when you make people laugh and feel better by being so cheerful all that time, and having people laugh is better than having them mad."

"You don't need to tell me," Aang said, grinning. "I've had one too many people mad at me. I guess that's why they say laughter is the best medicine; it's really hard to get mad when you feel happy."

Katara just nodded against him. "Thank you," she murmured, blinking drowsily.

Aang turned to meet her gaze. "For what?" he demanded, suppressing a yawn.

"Everything," Katara replied, smiling and leaning up to give him another kiss. "You're amazing."

The airbender just shrugged. "I don't know about that," he said, modestly. "But you're welcome."

Katara's eyes fluttered shut and she fell asleep with a smile gracing her features. Aang just smiled to himself, feeling rather happy he was the one responsible for the waterbender's happiness and he found himself wishing he'd be given even more opportunities in the future to make her just as happy. And casting one last glance at the waterbender sleeping beside him, Aang drifted off into a peaceful sleep, with a matching smile on his face.

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_Thanks for reading and for all the reviews! You guys are amazing! :)_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	87. Tainted

_A/N: Before I begin my usual, repetitive author's note about how horrible I've been, can I just say how awesome you guys are? When I first started this collection, I honestly didn't think I was going to go very far with it, but obviously, that didn't happen. So thanks for being so supportive and everything. ^^ And for those who sent me requests, thank you so much for being so understanding about the ridiculously long waits I've put you all through. You're all too nice. :D Seriously, you people should start PMing me and nagging me or something because it's taken me months to get some of these requests up (like this one). It's been almost four months since I got this request, so I apologize for the insanely long wait. All credit for this one goes to PandaLily22. Thanks for the request and hope it's okay! Happy Readings! :)_

_P.S. I'm still working on a couple of requests from Coolera and an expansion of the ending of the last chapter, so hopefully I can have those up soon!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything._

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**LXXXVII. Tainted**

"_We all grow up with the weight of history on us. Our ancestors dwell in the attics of our brains as they do in the spiraling chains of knowledge hidden in every cell of our bodies."_

~ Shirley Abbot

One week and three days after his arrival there, Tenzin came to the realization that he loved Ember Island. The exotic, sandy beaches, the ornate Fire Nation architecture, the people, the food, the sights…it was all so new, so vibrant, so lovely. He wondered why his parents made faces every time someone mentioned Ember Island; in all ten years of his life, he had never seen a place quite like this. There was so much to see and do, Tenzin wasn't sure two weeks was enough. There was even a theater here, something practically unheard of where he lived. Naturally, when Firelord Zuko allowed him to accompany his family to a play, Tenzin eagerly accepted the invitation and sat through the entire performance, in complete awe of everything. It was a play based on the war, but it was nothing like the horrible production his parents had told him about. Tenzin wished his siblings were with him to watch the play with him, but neither of them seemed interested in theater after the story their parents told them about the play they had seen before. Still, Ursa and Kazuya, the Firelord's children, were good company and the three children sat through the entire production occasionally offering their commentaries to each other. It was late evening when the play ended and they trooped out, following Zuko and Mai back to the summer house where Aang and Katara were to meet them.

"Is all of that play true, Dad?" Ursa wondered.

Zuko gave a small smile. "Not all of, but most of it was."

"Is it true that all the characters were based on you and your friends?" Kazuya asked.

Zuko nodded.

"Who were you?" they demanded.

"The bad guy that eventually ended up being good," he remarked, drolly.

"Oh, my dad told me all about that," Tenzin said, offhandedly. "He said you used to follow him and my mom all over the world to try and capture him."

"Not my finest moment," Zuko admitted. "But I did."

"Mom says they always beat you," Tenzin added, giggling and glancing up at the Firelord.

"Hey, I won my share of fights," Zuko said, feigning indignation. "There were plenty of times when I beat your parents."

"Really?"

"Well, I wouldn't say I beat them, exactly. We never really settled things. For every 'fight' they won, I think I 'won' one too."

"I'm glad we don't have to chase the Avatar," Ursa piped up, her amber eyes fixed straight ahead. "Seems hard."

"It wasn't easy," the Firelord admitted. "But hopefully, there won't be any more wars and chasing of Avatars."

"Why'd you do it in the first place, Dad?" Ursa demanded. "If you were always good…"

"I wasn't always good. I was confused," Zuko admitted. "And tainted."

Mai gave a hard laugh at Zuko's analogy. "That's one way to put it."

The three children just exchanged glances.

"What do you mean?" They demanded in unison.

"Firelord Sozin, who started the war, was my great-grandfather," Zuko explained. "But so was Avatar Roku. Uncle Iroh said good and evil were always battling inside me which was why I was so confused."

"Does that mean we're tainted too?" Kazuya asked, quietly.

Zuko gazed at his son quizzically, before shrugging. "I don't know. I hope not but then again, in my family, everyone seems to be tainted to a certain extent. But you don't need to worry about anything; I'm not going to turn into my father and banish either of you and send you on a wild goose chase for someone to restore your honor."

Ursa and Kazuya just smiled, but Tenzin remained thoughtful. He was in a pensive mood even after his parents came to pick him up and didn't say a word on the walk back to their house. When the finally reached the house, the young airbender slipped out into their backyard and watched the sunset while mulling things over. All that talk about being tainted left him wondering. Was he tainted too? The century war had affected everyone in some way or another, especially his parents. Didn't that make him tainted too, then? He asked his father as much when Aang came out to keep his son company.

He asked it simply. "Dad, am I tainted?"

Aang raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"Kazuya and Ursa were asking their dad if they were tainted because of their family history. Am I? I mean, you're the Avatar, and you and Mom helped end the war, but I'm the only airbender besides you, so does that mean I'm tainted?"

"No," Aang replied, slowly. "The war affected everyone in some way, but I wouldn't say you're tainted."

The airbender heaved a sigh of relief. "That makes me feel better," he admitted, before lapsing into silence. He slipped back into his pensive state for a minute before addressing his father. "Dad, what was the war like?"

"What do you mean?"

Tenzin shrugged. "I just can't imagine you being chased around by the Firelord or not knowing how to bend the elements."

Aang chuckled. "Yeah, it does seem hard to imagine, doesn't it?"

Tenzin nodded. "I can't imagine Uncle Zuko chasing you either. I mean, I know he's technically not out uncle, but…" He trailed off, gazing at the horizon where a flock of birds where diving for food.

"He was a different person back then," Aang pointed out. "In a way, we all were. Sometimes, it seems hard to believe how far we've come."

"So, what was the war like?"

Aang shrugged. "Tiresome, actually. It was a lot of work, mastering all the elements and stopping evil Firelords, and getting your mom to fall in love with me." He chuckled at the last part, but Tenzin had no idea why.

"You and Mom didn't always love each other?" Tenzin wondered.

"Believe it or not, no. I didn't even think about love until I met your mother. But with the war going on, I didn't have much time to really do anything about how I felt. And I was really nervous too."

"I can't imagine you and Mom not being together. And I can't imagine not being able to visit the Fire Nation without disguising ourselves."

"Like I said, it was different back then, but we all still managed to have fun now and again when Zuko wasn't chasing us or when we weren't focusing on how to save the world."

"Mom says you were a goofball," the little airbender said, giggling.

"Sounds about right."

"She also says you didn't want to be the Avatar."

Aang nodded. "Sometimes, I still don't."

"Why?" Tenzin asked, glancing up at him. "You're the most powerful person in the world. That's so cool."

"Power's overrated," his father said, sagely. "Besides, being the Avatar comes with a lot of work. And being the last airbender never helped either."

"Well, you've got me now," Tenzin pointed out. "I'll help."

"You just focus on growing up," Aang replied, ruffling his hair. "Don't start worrying about work until you need to."

"I wish I could have an adventure like you," Tenzin said, sighing wistfully.

"I'm sure you will," Aang said, smiling.

"You think so?" the little airbender asked, eagerly.

Aang nodded. "I'm sure it won't be exactly like the one your mother and I had, but something tells me it'll be an adventure all the same."

Tenzin sighed. "Probably not," he replied seriously. "Everyone will probably just expect me to get married and have lots of little airbending babies." He sighed again. "I wish I was a waterbender."

Aang laughed. "Actually, your mom thought you were. She nearly broke down over it."

Tenzin gave his father a quizzical look. "She doesn't like me being an airbender?" It seemed like a stupid question because, at ten, Tenzin knew his parents loved all their children regardless of what element they bent, but he couldn't seem to phrase his question properly. So he tried again. "I mean, she was upset that I wasn't a waterbender?"

Aang shook his head. "No, she thought you were a waterbender because you have her eyes. She didn't think you were an airbender and she kept telling me she was sorry that none of you could airbend. Of course, the day we found out you were an airbender, she was thrilled."

"I wish I was a waterbender though. Or even an earthbender," Tenzin admitted. He shot a sideways glance at his father. "Y-you're not mad at me, are you, Dad?"

"For wanting to be a waterbender or an earthbender? No, of course not."

"Really?"

"Really," his father promised. "Why should I be mad at you? It's not like you have any say in whether you can bend or not and what element you bend if you can bend at all."

"I wouldn't mind it so much if the whole world wasn't counting on me to help bring back the airbenders."

"Tenzin, that's not your job."

"But I'm the only airbender left, besides you."

"Yes, but it's not your job to bring back all the airbenders. For one thing, it's not going to happen and for another…"

"What do you mean it won't happen?" Tenzin demanded.

"It's not going to happen overnight. It'll probably take hundreds of years to repopulate the airbenders, so making it your job to restore them is about as pointless as trying to teach you firebending; it won't happen with you. It'll take a long time, so don't worry about it."

"I can't help it. Sometimes, I wish Kya and Bumi were airbenders too," Tenzin said. "Then it would make things a little easier."

Aang shook his head, smiling. "You're just like your mom. She was worried that everyone would be mad at her if none of you were airbenders, but I told her it wasn't her job to bring back the airbenders. And it's not yours either. The monks used to say the world will always find a way to restore its balance in the end. Sometimes, it just needs help."

"But what about the next Avatar? How is the next Avatar going to learn airbending if there aren't any airbenders?"

"From you, probably."

"Me?" Tenzin squeaked. "But I can't."

"Something tells me you'll have to," Aang said. "By the time the next Avatar is old enough to master the elements, you'll most likely be a master. And if you had children, I don't think they'd be old enough to have mastered it yet. But I could be wrong."

"Maybe the next Avatar won't need to learn airbending at all," Tenzin said hopefully. "Maybe there'll be peace and…" He sighed. "You really think I can do it, Dad? If I had to, do you really think I could teach the next Avatar airbending?"

"I'm sure you can do anything you want, Tenzin, as long as you put your mind to it."

Tenzin beamed and was about to reply when Katara came to find them.

"Dinner's ready," she said. "Kya and Bumi are down at the beach. Do you want to go get them, Aang?"

"Sure."

Tenzin smiled. "Race you there, Dad."

"You're on," Aang replied, airbending himself up. "Are you coming, Katara?"

"Way ahead of you," she called, running towards the ocean.

"Mom can't airbend," Tenzin pointed out. "How is she going to race us?"

"Like that," Aang said, pointing to the chunk of ice Katara was using to propel herself forward. "And she has a head start, so we'd better hurry."

And as the two airbenders took off running towards the beach, Tenzin realized that perhaps his father was right. He was too young to worry about matters such as being tainted and what his future would hold. He was still a growing boy who intended to make the most out of his childhood. He'd worry about all of that later.

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_Thanks for reading and thanks for all the reviews I've gotten so far. You guys are amazing! :)_

_~ Cassie_

_P.S. Korra's coming out in 25 days! :) Is anyone else super excited? (That's a stupid question, isn't it?)_


	88. Of Birthdays and Presents

_A/N: So, I was going through all my unposted oneshots and since today is my friend's birthday, I thought this would be really appropriate for the occasion. I know I should really be posting the last couple of requests I have left since I haven't updated in over a week, but I've been really busy lately with work and other stuff (like spending entirely too much time on KF :D) and since this was already finished and has been sitting on my computer for nearly seven months now, I thought I should post it. I'm still working on those requests, so I'll have one up the next time I update. Thanks for being so patient! ^^ Hope this is decent. Enjoy! :)_

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything_.

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**LXXXVIII. Of Birthdays and Presents**

"_Our birthdays are feathers in the broad wing of time."_

~Jean Paul Richter

Sokka scanned the horizon looking for any signs of Appa. To say he was excited was an understatement. Even though he had seen Aang a week ago, he couldn't wait to see his old friend again. Ever since he'd been in the Earth Kingdom, Aang had been submerged in work. For the last few months, he'd been running all across the world doing all sorts of things, so Sokka was quite thrilled that Aang would be on Kyoshi for a day or two. The last time he had seen Aang had been a week ago, and it was entirely by chance that they met. Sokka had been sailing to Kyoshi and Aang was headed to the Southern Air Temple when Sokka had noticed Appa in the sky asked the captain to signal him. When they'd met, Sokka had accompanied him to the Southern Air Temple where he had found a broken old present from Gyatso to Aang with the date of his birthday etched into it. After a day there, Sokka had started scheming and they had flown to Kyoshi where Aang had dropped him off, but not before Sokka made him promise to drop by a week later. So, the day of Aang's arrival found Sokka waiting on the beach with Suki for the airbender to arrive.

"Will you please tell me what's got you so worked up?" Suki wondered, as Sokka continued pacing back and forth.

"Well, you know how Aang's birthday is in a week?" He asked. Suki nodded. "I don't know what to get him for a present."

"Oh. Remind me again what we're doing?" Suki said.

"We're luring him to Ba Sing Se for a surprise party."

Suki snickered. "Luring him? Sokka, you make it sound like we're trying to capture him." Sokka shrugged. "And what kind of party are we throwing? You said Toph and Zuko and Mai couldn't make it."

"Yeah, so it'll just be you and me and Aang. Oh, and General Iroh. He wants us to have it at the Jasmine Dragon because he says he needs an excuse to break out his good tea."

"What about Katara?"

"What about her?" Sokka wondered.

Suki blinked. "Shouldn't you invite her? When was the last time she saw Aang?"

"When we were all in the South Pole."

"Sokka, that was nearly four months ago."

"So?"

"Why aren't you inviting her?" Suki demanded, staring at her boyfriend.

Sokka shrugged. "I was going to. But you saw how she got when Aang left. She was all depressed and mope-y."

"Is mope-y even a word?" Suki wondered.

"Whatever. She was moping. She has a tendency to do that. I just don't want her to get all moody again. Aang may be one of my best friends, and he may be in love with her, but Katara will always be my little sister. I'm just trying to look out for her."

Suki looked skeptical. "By keeping them apart?"

"Sort of," Sokka admitted. "Look, it's not the best idea and if they find out, they'll kill me, but it's hard seeing Katara act like she'll never be happy. It took her a whole month to adjust to being without Aang; if they're together for a day and then he leaves, I don't know what she'll be like. As smart as she is sometimes, she can be pretty stupid. She'll probably delude herself into thinking he doesn't care or something."

"So keeping them apart should fix things?"

Sokka sighed. "Then what do you think we should do? If we invite her, Katara will get all moody before Aang leaves and Aang will blame himself for it; those two are just like that."

Suki had to admit, her boyfriend had a point, but she thought not inviting Katara wasn't much of a plan, either. So she racked her brains while Sokka paced back and forth on the beach. It was a good half hour before Sokka suddenly stopped pacing and broke the silence.

"I have an idea," he exclaimed. "I know what to get Aang, but I'll need your help."

"Sure," Suki agreed.

"Alright, listen carefully," Sokka began as he explained his idea. By the time he was done, Suki had to admit, it was pretty good.

"That's very sweet of you, Sokka," she said, giving him a kiss. "Now act normal. Aang's here."

Sure enough, the sound of Appa's roar was clearly audible over the ocean waves. Sokka was grinning widely when Appa landed on the sandy shores and Momo attacked him, chattering happily.

"I missed you too, buddy," Sokka laughed, scratching Momo's ears. "Even though I saw you a week ago."

"He was dying to see you," Aang admitted.

"Why?" Sokka asked.

"I don't spoil him with food like you do," the airbender chuckled.

"I didn't think so," Sokka said. "Has the big, bad Avatar been starving you, Momo? You look so thin."

Suki laughed. "He'll probably be fatter after he's spent five minutes with you. And I think the proper question is has the big, bad council been starving the Avatar? You look tired, Aang."

Aang smiled. "Part of my job, apparently. But I'm sleeping and eating properly, if that's what you're wondering."

"Good," Suki said. "Katara would kill me if she found out you were here and I didn't make sure."

Aang smiled wider. "Sounds like Katara. Is she still in the South Pole?"

Sokka nodded. "I think she's trying to have a competition with you to see who's busier. She's still helping Pakku train all the new waterbenders there."

"Oh."

Both Sokka and Suki heard the hint of sadness in his voice and exchanged glances.

"Suki and I are going shopping," Sokka said, suddenly. "Want to come?"

"Sokka, let him relax a bit," Suki chuckled.

"It's fine," Aang said, following them as they headed into the village. "I've been sitting for hours anyway."

"You don't mind going dress shopping do you?" Sokka wondered as Suki walked ahead of them. "Suki wants to get a few."

Aang shrugged. "I don't mind. Do you?"

"Eh, it's kind of boring but I'm used to it. I used to go with my mom and Katara when I was little. Besides, after she's done, we can hit the armory and look at the swords. I haven't found one I really liked since I lost my space sword."

"Sounds like fun," Aang said, as they ducked into a shop. Suki disappeared for a bit, leaving Aang and Sokka to wander around. The airbender smiled at the thought of Katara in some of the dresses. They would have looked stunning on her, though Aang was convinced Katara could make anything look stunning. Smiling to himself, he followed Sokka around the shop, not really paying attention to the warrior's ramblings and tuning out Sokka's commentary on the dresses, until he spotted a blue one nearby. Aang slipped away to get a better look. It was nearly the same color of blue Katara always wore. The design was simple yet elegant and functional. If Katara had been there, Aang was sure she would have bought the dress in a heartbeat. She always used to complain about how most of the dresses she owned weren't conducive to fighting. She didn't expect to be attacked at every event they went to, but Katara always liked to play it safe and be prepared just in case.

"That's really…blue," Sokka said, coming to stand beside him. "I'm not so sure Suki would like something like that. It's not really her style."

"Katara would like it," Aang said, gazing at it.

"You think?" Sokka wondered. Aang nodded as the shopkeeper approached them and smiled kindly.

"Are either of you two gentlemen interested in buying this for a lady?"

"No thank you," Aang said, politely declining his offer.

Sokka looked thoughtful for a minute before replying. "I'll buy it."

Aang looked confused as the shopkeeper folded it up. "I thought you said Suki wouldn't like it."

"Who said I'm buying it for Suki? I'm buying it for Katara. I'll send it to her saying it's from you."

"But…"

"You were the one who found it and said she would like it," Sokka pointed out. "And if you're worried about me paying for it, you could take me and Suki with you when you go to Ba Sing Se tomorrow in return, okay?" Sokka left to pay even before Aang could respond. Suki met him at the counter.

"Well?"

Sokka grinned. "Phase one, complete."

"Did you get a dress?" Suki asked, eyeing the dress Sokka was holding and trying not to laugh.

"Yeah, for Katara. Aang actually picked it out," Sokka admitted. "I'm going to send it to her. And we're going to Ba Sing Se."

"So what do we do when we get there?"

"Start Phase two."

Suki rolled her eyes at Sokka's codenames, but smiled.

Aang's stay on Kyoshi was over before he knew it. One day wasn't really long enough, he realized, because the three of them had hardly done anything. They had gone shopping for most of the day and relaxed after their evening meal. Sokka and Suki had given him some vague reason for wanting to accompany him back to Ba Sing Se and had gone to pack. The following morning, the trio had left Kyoshi bright and early. Sokka and Suki had fallen asleep in Appa's saddle, leaving Aang the only one up. So the airbender quietly steered Appa while letting his thoughts stray to a certain waterbender. He tried not to think about her, but watching Sokka and Suki certainly didn't help. He'd been focusing on getting his work done as quickly as possible so he could spend time with Katara, but it wasn't as easy as he thought it would be. It seemed like just when his work was winding down, something or other came up to prevent him from returning to see her. He had hoped she would be on Kyoshi when he went to visit Sokka and Suki, but as he had suspected, she wasn't. Sighing, Aang tried concentrating on something else, like his birthday coming up soon. But without Katara, even the thought of turning sixteen didn't seem enticing.

They reached Ba Sing Se in the evening and Aang dropped Sokka and Suki off at the house they all shared in the Upper Ring before heading out again. Sokka and Suki didn't ask him where he was going, but used the time to meet Iroh and fill him in on their plan. For the rest of the week, in the remaining days before the airbender's birthday, Sokka and Suki snuck out of the house as soon as Aang left and returned just as soon as he did. If at all Aang was suspicious of their behavior, he didn't show it or comment on it. So Sokka and Suki were able to organize everything without Aang ever finding out.

The day of his birthday found the airbender up and ready to go to sit in some stuffy chamber and listen to the Earth King reason with some officials as usual, but Sokka had woken up early for the occasion and informed a stunned airbender that he was relieved of his duties temporarily. After the warrior was awake enough to talk coherently, he explained how he had found out about the Avatar's birthday and how he and Suki had been planning for it ever since. Aang had to admit, he was glad not to work, but he wished Sokka and Suki hadn't gone to all the trouble for him. He wished the others could be there too, but he was thankful that at least Sokka and Suki were able to celebrate with him, though he did find the party a bit unnecessary; he wasn't one for all the attention.

By the time afternoon had arrived, Sokka had hurried him to Iroh's tea shop where the four of them had lunch (and tea, of course). Iroh had closed his shop just for Aang's birthday and to join in on the celebration. It felt good to relax and do nothing and Aang was immensely thankful his friends had gotten him out of work. They spent all afternoon there and it was nearing evening by the time the remnants of the delicious lunch were cleared. The only thing that would have made the day any better, Aang thought, would have been the presence Toph, Katara, and if Zuko and Mai had shown up, even if the Firelord and his girlfriend weren't much for parties.

"This was really thoughtful of you guys," Aang said, smiling appreciatively. "But you didn't have to do any of this."

"Oh, it was no trouble on my part," Iroh said, grinning. "I was happy to help. These two did all the work."

Sokka and Suki laughed when Iroh pointed at them.

"We wanted to," Suki said. "You looked like you could use some fun."

"Speaking of fun, it's time for presents," Sokka said, grinning.

"You guys didn't have to get me presents either," Aang protested. "That lunch was a present itself."

Iroh smiled kindly. "I know how much you liked Katara's cooking," he whispered. "We figured you'd enjoy it since it was similar to Katara's cooking."

Aang nodded. "It tasted exactly like her cooking."

"Well, that's not your present," Sokka said. "Believe me, it wasn't easy getting you one because we had no idea what to get you at first."

"But, I think we found the perfect one," Suki said, laughing. "You'll have to forgive us for just getting you one present, though, and not more. Hopefully, though, you'll really like this present."

"You guys didn't need to get me anything," Aang said. "Really."

"No, we had to," the Kyoshi warrior replied, matter-of-factly. "It was calling us."

"Yeah, it was practically begging us to take it to you," Sokka added. "Are you ready for it?"

Aang chuckled. "I guess." Sokka just crossed the room and opened the door, letting the evening light filter into the shop. Aang heard footsteps and saw a shadow approach and wondered what on earth the two had gotten him. It wasn't until Sokka cleared his throat that whoever was outside entered the shop. Aang's breath caught in his throat and for a split second, he wondered if he was hallucinating. Standing in the open doorway, bathed in the soft evening light and wearing the simple yet elegant dress Aang had "bought" for her on Kyoshi, Katara looked dazzling and Aang had all of a few seconds to take her in before he heard his name pass through her lips in delight and before she threw herself into his arms. The airbender had half a mind to ask Sokka if this was a dream, but he knew the minute Katara wrapped her arms around him it wasn't. His dreams were never this good, anyway.

"See?" Sokka joked. "I told you your present was begging us to bring it to you."

Katara smiled. "I didn't beg," she told Aang. "It was more like_ requesting_."

"Actually, she had no idea about any of this until the day you came to Kyoshi," Suki admitted. "That was why Sokka and I wanted to come here and why Sokka sent her that dress you picked out; it gave him an excuse to send a letter to Katara, so he sent one asking her to come."

"And I love the dress," Katara said, giving Aang a quick kiss. "It was very thoughtful of you, Aang. And by the way, Sokka, Operation: Top Secret Birthday Party isn't a very sophisticated codename."

Sokka shrugged.

"I'm still confused," Aang admitted. "But it doesn't matter. I'm just glad Katara's here."

"Me too," the waterbender agreed. "I came here right after I got Sokka's letter. They wouldn't let me see you earlier, though, because apparently I'm your present." Aang grinned. "I hope you liked mine though."

"Liked what?" Aang asked, confused.

"The lunch. That was my present."

"Huh?"

"I think you'd better explain your plan, genius," Suki whispered to Sokka.

"It's really simple." He explained. "I sent a letter to Katara the day you landed on Kyoshi inviting her to the party as your present since Suki and I figured she was what you really wanted. She got here a couple of days ago and General Iroh let her stay here so you wouldn't see her. And Suki and I have been coming here to help them with all the preparations since we came here. And because Katara was your present and you're not allowed to see presents till after all the food is gone-which is really convenient, by the way- Katara cooked the lunch, since she didn't have time to get you a present and all. She was hiding until now and before you freak out, we left some food for her so she wouldn't starve. She was just outside the door all along; you just didn't see her." Sokka wondered if that made any sense, but Aang seemed to grasp the gist of it.

"It was torture," the waterbender admitted. "I was trying really hard not to blow my cover."

"I almost wish you had," Aang admitted, laughing. "But thanks for coming."

Katara just smiled. "Wild animals wouldn't have kept me away."

Suki smiled at the pair. "I think we'll leave you two alone to catch up."

"But don't try anything," Sokka warned. "I'm watching you two."

"Come on, Sokka," Suki groaned. "Leave them alone."

"Oh, and Aang, one more thing." Sokka whispered something to his friend and Katara raised an eyebrow inquiringly when she noticed Aang turn red.

"What did Sokka say?" she wondered, as soon as they were left alone.

"Nothing," was his hasty reply.

"Come on, Aang. I know you better than that."

"I'll tell you someday," he promised, blushing as Sokka's words echoed in his mind. _You're old enough to propose by Water Tribe standards and Katara's already old enough to get married. _

"You sure you don't want to tell me?"

"I think it might be a little awkward since we haven't seen each other in a while," he admitted.

"Then maybe this will make it less awkward," Katara suggested, leaning up to kiss him. She relaxed as he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her closer, and kissing her back as if trying to make up for all the months they spent apart. She only pulled away when she felt him tugging gently on her braid.

"You've grown short," he whispered, smirking playfully when he noticed their height difference.

"You've grown tall," she countered, capturing his lips once again. Vaguely, Aang wondered how he'd deprived himself of her kisses for the last few months. They had always been addicting and the more he got, the more he wanted and time and distance had done nothing to change that.

"I missed doing that," Katara shamelessly admitted, once the need for air had become apparent and they had pulled apart.

"Me too," Aang said. "I missed you."

"Then why didn't you visit? You knew where I was."

Aang shrugged. "I wanted to finish everything before I came, but it didn't exactly work out. Besides, Sokka said you were really busy."

"I was in the South Pole; what do you expect? There's not much to do down there. The work was just to keep me occupied until you came."

"Oh."

By now, the sun was slipping past the horizon and the entire room was illuminated in the reddish-pink glow of the setting sun. A gentle breeze drifted in through the open door and Katara caught sight of Sokka and Suki sitting on the steps outside and talking. Sokka met her gaze and mouthed something to her, smiling. Katara flushed and averted her gaze.

"What was that about?" Aang asked, noticing the waterbender blushing.

"I'll tell you someday," she retorted, playfully.

Aang just shrugged, but he was smiling. Without really knowing why, he and Katara moved to the balcony and watched the sunset.

"Isn't it funny how we keep ending up here?" Katara asked, referring to the balcony.

Aang nodded, smiling. "Yeah, but I don't mind it."

"Me neither," she admitted.

They lapsed into silence again and watched the red ball sink lower before they heard Sokka and Suki beckoning them. Sokka explained they were going out and that Katara and Aang were welcome to join them. Neither of them really minded, so they followed Sokka and Suki but at a slower pace, just content to be with each other. When Sokka and Suki ducked into an expensive looking shop and disappeared, Katara turned to the airbender.

"Aang?"

"Yeah?"

"I want to go with you," she said, meeting his gaze. She hoped he wouldn't say she should stay in the South Pole because she wasn't sure if she could. It was so different without him.

Aang just smiled and laced his fingers with hers. "You don't really have a choice," he teased. She was his present after all and it was a generally well known fact that one never left presents behind. "You're mine now."

She rolled her eyes, laughing. "I was always yours, birthday boy."

He grinned. "I know. I was just making sure you knew."

"Of course I…" She trailed off noticing Aang was watching Sokka signal something to him. Her brother went back to inspecting something with Suki and Katara raised an eyebrow.

"What is going on?" She demanded. "What does Sokka keep telling you?"

"Nothing," he replied, vaguely.

"That doesn't look like nothing," she said, frowning.

Aang just laughed and wrapped his arm around her. "I promise I'll tell you eventually."

She sighed. "If you say so. So, do you know why Sokka brought Suki to a jewelry shop? Suki doesn't even wear jewelry. She says it's not conducive to fighting."

Aang shrugged. He honestly hadn't even noticed they were in a jewelry shop until Katara had pointed it out. But now that they were here, Aang couldn't help noticing all the necklaces on display. It seemed as if the jeweler had drawn inspiration from all four nations because there were a few designs that looked like some of designs on air nomads' relics. There were even a couple from the Water Tribe and Aang inspected them closely. If he was going to make a betrothal necklace for Katara one day, he might as well as start thinking of ideas. He was a little worried she wouldn't like the necklace he made for her, but he had to make one first before he started thinking of her reaction to it. Katara caught him looking at the necklaces and she blushed. Her heart raced just thinking about all the reasons the airbender was suddenly so caught up in examining necklaces. But then a thought occurred to her and she smiled, mischievously.

"Aang?"

He looked at her inquiringly. "Yeah?"

"Blue is my favorite color," she said, causally. Actually, gray was because it was the color of his eyes, but she didn't tell him that. "And I love anything you make."

Aang just smiled. Suddenly, he wasn't so worried about proposing to Katara. And as they left the shop, Aang decided he'd start making the necklace tonight.


	89. Captive

_A/N: I know it's been almost two weeks since I last posted, but I've been swamped with work lately and I haven't really had time to work on the requests I have. I'm really sorry for making everyone who sent me requests wait, but these past couple of weeks have been really hectic and things probably won't wind down until next week for me, so I'm posting this. This is an old oneshot that I wrote a couple months ago and it's been sitting on my computer in my "Unposted Oneshots" (along with many other unposted stories) since then. I figured I could at least post some of my completed oneshots while I work on those requests. Hopefully I can have those requests (from Coolera. Wolverinejoe, and cocky-gurl) up soon. I'm super sorry for the ridiculously long wait, guys. But thank you so much for being so patient and not getting fed up with me! Anyways, I hope this is decent. Enjoy! ^^_

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything. _

* * *

**LXXXIX. Captive**

_You are my tomorrow _

_There's safety in your arms _

_Where you'll go I'll follow _

_'Cause you're the world where I belong_

~ Celine Dion, Right in Front of You

Katara wasn't quite sure how it had happened. It had been so subtle, hardly noticeable. It was just something she had come to realize after they had spent some time at the South Pole. About four years after the war, they had all split up. Aang had agreed to go to the South Pole with Sokka and Katara while Toph had been dropped off at Gaoling, opting for solid earth under her feet rather than ice. Suki had decided to visit the Southern Water Tribe a few months later, after she and the other Kyoshi warriors finished taking care of some new recruits. Since their return home, Sokka had been spending most of his free time planning what to do with Suki when she arrived and Katara spent most of her time with Aang. Now that the war was no longer looming over them and there were no time constraints, everyone had more time to spend leisurely. Katara couldn't say she was sorry to see the adventure end because as thrilling as it had been saving the world, it was a lot to ask of a small group of teenagers. She only wished the travelling part didn't have to end; she loved travelling the world and travelling with friends made it so much more exciting. But now that the travelling had ended and most of her friends had split up, she had come to the realization that without her friends, she wasn't really looking forward to doing anything. She missed Suki always beating her brother at anything or Toph constantly making sarcastic comments or Zuko just being stoic. She even missed Mai and her droll remarks about how she couldn't stand them sometimes. Without them around, especially Aang, she felt incomplete.

Abandoning the gloomy thoughts, Katara tried to focus on more pleasurable ones, but she found her thoughts straying to the same topic over and over again. She was immensely thankful Aang had decided to accompany them to the South Pole because she was sure she would have gone insane without him but she knew his stay wouldn't be forever. Even if some of the villagers thought they were engaged and teased her about how she had the Avatar eating out of the palm of her hand, Katara knew Aang wouldn't and couldn't stay in the South Pole. He'd have to leave eventually. But he wasn't leaving for a while yet, she presumed, so she intended to enjoy having him there.

Dinner found the waterbender in an inexplicably happy mood and Kanna asked her why she was so cheerful to which Katara replied she was simply happy. She wouldn't tell her grandmother it was because Aang was staying with them, but her grandmother didn't need to be told. It was written clearly on her granddaughter's face that she was enjoying spending time with the Avatar. Kanna smiled to herself and changed the subject. Pakku had plans of starting a formal waterbending school since his "school" at present was just a vast expanse of ice close to the village. He wanted to have separate classes and instructors because it was hard to train all the waterbenders when everyone was at a different level, and now that the Southern Water Tribe actually had some young waterbenders he thought it best to have a someone else teach them and he and Hakoda were talking about it before addressing Katara.

"How would you like to teach a class, Katara?" Hakoda asked.

"I'd love to teach a class. But I've been doing that for the past four years," she pointed out. Since the war had ended, Sokka and Katara had made numerous trips to the South Pole with Aang, and Katara often helped Pakku as long as they were there.

"True, but this will be different," Pakku admitted. "I'm giving you complete control of the students. You won't be my assistant instructor anymore. You'll have a full-time job actually teaching them, not just helping me. And besides, I'm not a healer, so I can't teach the art to the younger benders."

Katara looked thoughtful. "You really think I can do it?"

Aang nearly choked on his food from laughing. "Katara, if anyone can do it, it's you. Besides, you taught me, remember?"

"But I didn't really teach you. It was more like helping you and working on perfecting your moves."

"Same difference," Sokka replied, helping himself to another serving of food. "Just take the job. You'd be good at it."

"You think?"

"Positive," Sokka replied. "You're good at helping people and teaching suits you."

"I guess it's settled then," Katara said, smiling at her father.

"Good," Pakku said. "We can start classes as soon as we build the school. You'll be in charge of the younger kids; I'm not the most patient person and I'm sure to send half of them home in tears."

Katara laughed.

"What about you, Aang?" Sokka wondered, his mouth full of food. "Now that Katara's going to be a waterbending instructor, what are you going to do?"

"I could always use help," Pakku said, pointedly. "That is, when you have the time. And I'm sure Katara wouldn't mind the help either."

"Yeah," she agreed, enthusiastically. "You can teach with me, if you'd like."

"I'd love to," Aang began. "But I can't. There's still a lot of work left to do to restore balance and Zuko's probably going to need help."

"You could always help until you have to leave," Sokka said.

"Actually, I'm leaving in a couple of days. Zuko needs help and I kind of wanted to fix up part of the Southern Air Temple before I went to the Fire Nation."

"That's a good idea," Hakoda said, smiling. But his smile vanished when he noticed Katara's sudden forlorn expression. He could tell she wanted to go with the airbender, but after accepting Pakku's invitation, he knew she wouldn't suggest it. She was quiet all through the rest of dinner and didn't talk much. When she smiled or laughed, Hakoda could tell it was forced and he wondered if his suspicions were right. He had half a mind to ask her, but he didn't and let her be.

Katara didn't fall asleep that night. Her thoughts were too jumbled and she was too busy thinking to get any rest. She knew Aang would leave, but she just hadn't expected him to leave so soon. She felt sad and broken. And scared. She wouldn't admit it, but she was scared of Aang leaving. She was scared she'd never see him again. If he left, she knew it would be a while yet before she saw him, if at all. He could only visit when time permitted and she didn't have a flying bison to take her to him. It would be too difficult to take a boat to find him, too. Being the Avatar and a nomad by nature, Aang never stayed in one place for too long and she knew tracking him would be difficult and impractical but she was also fairly certain she couldn't survive for years without seeing him. So, she lay awake thinking about what to do.

In his room across the hall, Aang was doing the same thing. He'd seen Katara's sudden change during dinner and felt guilty. He knew she was upset, but he couldn't bring himself to ask her to come along. She had looked so happy when Pakku asked her to teach and he wasn't so sure she'd give that up if he asked her to come along. He just hoped she (and Sokka) knew the invitation was always open. They hardly needed to ask to come with him. Aang sighed and turned over in his bed. He felt awful for breaking the news to them like that and he hoped Katara didn't think he was using her. They'd been together ever since the end of the war and he hoped his departure wouldn't change anything between them. He knew beyond a shadow of a doubt time and distance would do nothing to change his feelings about her. But he hoped the waterbender didn't assume he'd dated her knowing that he would leave her one day. If it had been up to him, he never would have gone anywhere without her, but he had always known that there was a possibility he and Katara might have had to split up, even if he didn't like it.

The rest of Aang's stay passed by in a blur. He spent most of his time with Katara and if she was upset about him leaving, she was careful not to show it. She was even more careful about revealing her fears to him. She didn't know why, but for some reason, she couldn't bring herself to tell Aang she was scared this would be their last time seeing each other. She didn't want him to feel worse than he already was and she certainly didn't want him changing his plans for her. He'd already done more than enough of that in the last four years since the war had ended. But, on the day of his departure, a small part of Katara wished she had told him how she really felt. But even in spite of her nagging conscience telling her to confide in him, she didn't and merely wished him a safe trip.

"You better not forget to write, buddy," Sokka said. "And don't forget to give my letter to Suki.

Aang grinned. "I won't, Sokka." Even though the detour wasn't part of his plan, he had no problem delivering Sokka's letter for him.

"I guess this is goodbye, then," Katara said, looking downcast.

"It doesn't have to be," Aang replied, softly. "I could always come and visit."

"You're expected to visit," Sokka said, matter-of-factly. "Don't be a stranger around here."

Katara smiled. "Sokka's right, but please don't change your plans because of us. We'll understand if you're too busy to come and see us."

"But if I don't change them, then I'll never see you guys," Aang protested. "I'll just be too busy doing boring Avatar stuff."

Sokka laughed. "You could always send letters, you know, so you don't forget your best friends."

"I don't think I'll ever forget you guys," Aang said, as they all embraced. Katara felt him slip something into her hand and raised an eyebrow inquiringly. Aang just smiled. "So you don't forget," he whispered, kissing her gently before taking off on Appa. Katara just opened her hand to find a piece of paper with four simple words printed on it in neat characters. _I love you, Katara._ And she smiled.

Hakoda found her several minutes later, sitting in the same exact spot and watching the ocean. Her eyes scanned the note over and over again and her fingers absently traced the characters.

"You're still here?" Hakoda asked, somewhat surprised. "Honestly, I was expecting Sokka to tell me you'd gone with Aang or find a note of some sort waiting for me."

Katara just shook her head and Hakoda's gaze fell on the note in her hand. Her fingers partially obscured some words, but he caught her name and the word love.

"Did I ever tell you I almost didn't marry your mother?" he wondered, taking a seat beside her and gazing out at the ocean.

Katara just looked at him. "Really?"

He nodded. "I was about your age, I guess, eighteen or so. The war was going on and it hadn't really hit us yet, but there was a small party that was organizing an expedition to go out and offer our services to the Earth Kingdom troops. I wanted to go."

"Did you?" The waterbender wondered.

"Almost," Hakoda admitted. "Your mother and I weren't engaged at the time, but we were courting and you know how people gossip. The villagers had always assumed we'd end up together and I admit, I had every intention of proposing to her after I came back from the expedition. People had always talked about how we'd get engaged soon and I was really surprised when I heard them congratulate me on joining the expedition but say they were sorry for my loss. To be honest, I had no idea what they meant until the day we were supposed to leave. Your mother came down to the docks to see us off and she looked really sad and hurt. I hated knowing I was the one making her feel that way, so I stopped for a good minute and thought things through properly."

"And?" Katara prodded.

Hakoda shrugged. "I realized what I needed to do so I went on the ship and…"

"You left?" Katara cried. "But how could you just leave Mom behind?"

Hakoda laughed. "Let me finish, Katara. I got on the ship just to let the others know I wasn't going."

"Oh."

"There really wasn't any need for me to go; I'd only agreed because I wanted to. But I also loved your mother and I knew I'd have rather been with her than on an expedition that didn't really need me."

"So you stayed," Katara said.

Hakoda smiled at the memory. After he'd taken leave of the crew, he'd gone to find Kya in the crowd. She didn't notice him standing behind her until the ship was casting off and until he'd spoken.

"Someday, I'll be one of those men on that ship," he had said. Kya had jumped in surprise upon realizing Hakoda was the one speaking and when she'd finally regained her composure, she'd given him a bone-crushing hug that left him gasping for breath. Even now, Hakoda could picture her, the way her eyes had lit up in joy and surprise, her breathtaking smile, and her angelic laugh.

"I thought you wanted to go," she'd replied. "You said your place was with your friends, on that ship."

"Yeah," He'd admitted. "But a man knows where he's needed most and I realized that my place was here with you."

"But what about your friends on board?" she had wondered. "Won't you miss them?"

"Yeah, but I'll live. Besides, if I had gone, there was one friend I'd have missed even more."

"Who?" Kya had demanded, smirking at him.

"You."

"Mom must have been happy." Katara said, drawing him out of his memories. She was smiling softly and her hand was curled around the pendant of Kya's necklace.

"I guess she was happy," Hakoda chuckled. "If she wasn't then, she certainly was when I asked her to marry me the next day. I know I was happy. If I had gone on that expedition, I might have risked my future with her."

"So why are you telling me this?" Katara wondered, meeting his gaze.

"The future's unpredictable," Hakoda said, smiling gently at his daughter. "I know you love teaching waterbending and I know you love being in the South Pole, but I also know you love Aang. He'll most likely be busy and it may be a few months or even years before he comes back. Maybe you should have gone with him."

"But he didn't invite me," Katara protested, knowing her argument was weak. She of all people never needed an invitation.

"I think it's because you were so enthusiastic about teaching. I don't think he wanted you to leave even before you'd started doing what you've always wanted."

"I was only enthusiastic about it because I thought he'd be there," she conceded. "I was looking forward to teaching with him. And I love teaching, but it's not what I've always wanted."

"It used to be, when you were a little girl."

"Well, things change. I've changed. All I want now is…" She let her voice trail away and sighed.

"I understand," Hakoda said, gently.

"What if I never see him again, Dad?"

Hakoda shrugged. "I don't know but, somehow, I don't think he'll stay away forever."

"But you said it yourself: he'll be busy. It might be years before I see Aang again. What if I never do? What if he forgets about me or he can't find me or…?"

"You could spend the rest of your life worrying about things like that," Hakoda interrupted. "Or you could just go after him now."

"But I can't just leave now," she protested.

"Why not?" Her father demanded. "What have you got to lose?"

"I…"

"Katara, there's a reason people tell us to follow our hearts. As cheesy as it might sound, I haven't met one person who has regretted following their heart."

"But the waterbending school and my classes; if I leave now, I'll…"

"You think teaching is enough to satisfy you for the rest of your life?"

"Well, no, but…"

"The way I see it, your future can only go two ways. You might wait around for Aang forever and teach waterbending, and you might be perfectly content just working until he shows up. Or, you could just go meet him at the Southern Air Temple before he goes to the Fire Nation and not worry about when you'll see him next."

"But I'll have to give up teaching. I don't mind, but I promised Master Pakku I'd help."

"I think he'd understand," Hakoda answered.

Katara smiled and reread the note Aang had given her for the hundredth time that day. Her father knew her too well. He had been absolutely right when he said her future could only go two ways; she would either be with Aang or wait for him even if it killed her. But he was also right about one other thing; she had absolutely nothing to lose by going after him now. She was convinced the only reason he had given her the note was to make sure she didn't forget how he felt when he couldn't be there to tell her. And she knew that she could either spend the rest of her life waiting for him and reading that note as a reminder, over and over again until Aang came back or until the words ceased to mean anything to her and she pined away. Or, she could either meet him at the Southern Air Temple and listen to him tell her that he loved her for the rest of her life. It wasn't something that required any thought really, because her heart had long ago made the decision even if her mind had been hesitant to follow through with it. She'd lost count of how many times she told Aang she needed him during the war but, oddly enough, she found that she needed Aang now more than ever.

"You know," Hakoda said thoughtfully, helping her up. "If you take the next boat out of here, you could be at the Southern Air Temple before Aang."

Katara just threw her arms around him. "Thanks, Dad. You're the best."

"I do try," he chuckled, returning her embrace. "But I expect to see the two of you here often. Aang may be the Avatar and he may be in love with you, but you tell him to bring you here now and again, understand?"

Katara nodded and gave him a quick kiss. "Thanks for understanding," she whispered before running inside to pack her things.

"I expect an invitation to the wedding," the chief teased as she hurried away. All he heard was the sound of her musical laugh carrying effortlessly on the icy breeze.

* * *

Aang reached the Southern Air Temple a week after he had left the South Pole. He would have gotten there sooner, but Suki had insisted he stay on Kyoshi and once Ty Lee got involved it was next to impossible to leave. He'd spent a day there and it was a three day journey back to the Air Temple. The entire week had been torture, truthfully. He missed Katara more than he thought possible. He'd expected to miss her, but he hadn't really expected to feel like this. Currently, he didn't really want to do much of anything. If left to his own devices, Aang would have turned Appa back in the direction of the South Pole and gone back for Sokka and Katara but he knew he couldn't. He was supposed to meet with Zuko and in any case, Katara would be busy with her classes. Sighing, Aang made his way through the abandoned temple, going wherever his feet took him.

He found himself on an intact balcony overlooking several plateaus below. Over a hundred years ago, the same plateaus had been teeming with airbenders, bison, and lemurs, but now it was empty and silent. Thinking about Katara certainly didn't help, either. Aang was sure if he didn't find a suitable distraction soon to keep him from thinking about Katara he'd cave in and go back to the South Pole to beg for her to come with him. But he found no such distraction and turned his gaze upwards to the sky. The sun had slipped partially past the horizon and the sky was a canvas of reds, pinks, purples, and blue, all blending into each other, but Aang didn't find watching the sunset as fun as he once had. Without Katara, everything just seemed so different. He didn't really know what was wrong with him. In the four years since the war had ended, he and Katara had been away from each for weeks on end, sometimes. Then again, during all those times, they had known they would be reunited. The only difference now was that they didn't know when they'd see each other next.

Aang spent some time just watching the sun set until Momo landed beside him and chirped at him. If he had been able to speak, Aang was sure his tone would have been almost reproachful.

"I should start fixing the temple, shouldn't I?" Aang sighed, petting the lemur. He'd intended to get to work right away, but he hadn't been prepared to feel so dejected. Momo chirped again and bobbed his head. "Yeah, I know. But I don't really feel like doing anything. Without Katara around, nothing seems worth doing."

Momo just swished his tail back and forth and the airbender took a seat beside him on the railing, letting his feet dangle over the edge. For a while lemur and airbender remained silent until Momo finally chirped again.

Aang laughed. "I know, I know," he responded. "Katara would probably yell at me if she was here. But I don't really feel like doing anything." He smiled when Momo purred and curled up on his lap. "I wonder what she'd say if she saw us now."

"She might tell you how much she loves you and misses you."

Aang whirled around and nearly fell off the ledge in surprise when he noticed a certain waterbender leaning against the smooth stone wall. "Katara? How and when did you get here? What are you doing here? I thought you were in the South Pole."

"Boat, a few days ago, and looking for you," she laughed, in response to his questions. "And I was in the South Pole, but I came here because I…" She stopped and sighed and her gaze fell to the floor.

"You what?" Aang prodded, hopping off the ledge and walking towards her.

Katara just threw herself into his arms. "Honestly, I was scared I was never going to see you," her muffled voice came as she hugged him.

Aang just laughed, returning the embrace. "That wouldn't have happened, because I was seriously thinking about going back and asking you to come with me."

"But you didn't."

Aang nodded.

"Why not?"

"I don't know," he admitted. "I didn't think it was fair to ask you when you seemed so happy about finally being able to teach waterbending."

Katara pulled away and smiled. "I was only happy because I thought you'd teach with me since you were staying."

"Oh. You know, if you stay here you can't teach waterbending."

"I know," she replied, simply. "But it doesn't matter. I'll just teach whenever we go back to the South Pole."

"We?" Aang repeated. "You mean you're staying?"

Katara laughed. "You didn't think I came all this way just to give you a hug and leave, did you?"

"I hope not," the airbender replied, grinning. "Seems like a waste of time to come this far for just a hug. A kiss would be nice too."

"And what makes you think you're going to get one after you left at the South Pole with nothing but a note?" She demanded, playfully.

"Um…," he began, but Katara fell into a fit of laughter. "Mind telling me what's so funny?"

"You are. I was only teasing."

"Oh."

"But, honestly, the note wasn't enough."

"I know," he admitted. "But it was the only thing I could think of. I didn't want you to think my leaving would change anything between us."

"I didn't think that," she said, softly. The two lapsed into silence for a few seconds until Katara continued. "I came here because the note wasn't good enough. I decided I could either spend the rest of my life in the South Pole reading this note until you came back or…"

"Or?"

She met his gaze and blushed. "Or, I could find you and listen to you tell me that for as long as it's true."

"So you mean for forever?" he asked, smiling like a schoolchild and making Katara's heart melt. "No problem. So does this mean you're staying?"

She nodded. "Under one condition."

The young Avatar eyed her warily. "What condition?"

"I get to come with you wherever you go."

"You won't be bored and sad?"

She shook her head. "I'll be bored and sad back at the South Pole. Now that I'm here, I can't go back."

"Why not?"

"There's an old saying: love is a little like bondage because the lovers hold each other captive." Aang just gave her a confused look and Katara smiled. "It must be true because even though you were only gone for a few hours before I decided to come here, I was going crazy without you. So wherever you go, I go."

"Why?"

She shrugged. "I guess that's what happens when you fall in love. But that saying is right because I don't think I'll ever be able to go back unless you tell me to."

"That's not true," Aang said. "You have free-will."

"I think you mean semi-free will. It's only free to a certain extent according to the saying."

Aang shuddered. "Please don't say that. You make it sound like I can control you."

"Not literally, but in a way, I guess you can."

"You're sure this is what you want, though?"

"Of course," she said, smiling and lacing her fingers with his. "Even if you were a beggar or the poorest person in the world, I wouldn't care. As long as we were together, nothing else would matter."

"If you say so," he returned, giving her a small smile.

"Come on," she said, tugging him indoors. "You look hungry. I made some food."

Aang started to follow, but stopped suddenly.

"Hey, Katara?"

The waterbender raised an eyebrow inquiringly.

"Can I get that kiss now?" he asked, innocently.

Her cerulean eyes widened in surprise and she laughed. Standing on her tiptoes, she pressed her lips against his, making a mental note to reprimand him about his growth spurt later. But as he wrapped his arms around her and kissed her back, any thoughts of scolding him were erased and the only thing she could think of was how right this felt. With Aang, she felt safe, complete, and if a person could live off of love, then she was sure she'd never need anyone other than Aang because his embrace was her home and his kisses, her food. As long as Aang was around, Katara knew she'd never need anything else.

* * *

_Thanks for reading and as always, thanks for all the lovely reviews! You're all wonderful! :)_

_~ Cassie_


	90. Promises

_A/N: Gah, I'm a horrible author, but what else is new? ^^ So, I know I said I'd try and have one of the requests I was supposed to do posted by now, but I've been really busy with exams and stuff, so I didn't have much time to work on them. This is an old oneshot I wrote a while back and then modified for a writing contest. Since I haven't posted anything in a while, I thought I'd post this while I work on those requests. I promise I'll post them as soon as I can, so to those who sent me said requests, thanks for being so patient! ^^ And 90 chapters! Whoohoo! Honestly didn't think I'd make it this far or that anyone would be bothered to follow this collection, so thank you to everyone who read and followed this collection. It means a lot to me! :) Anyways, I hope this is alright. Enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything._

* * *

**XC. Promises**

"_Promise only what you can deliver. Then deliver more than you promise."_

~ Unknown

They were hopelessly lost, and Sokka knew it. The shops and houses all blended together so differentiating between the two was next to impossible. The streets were dim and the city quiet and suddenly, Sokka wished he had had the presence of mind not to bring Katara along with him that evening. As usual, his shopping spree lasted longer than normal and he set off for camp empty handed, but now that they were actually walking back, he realized how eerie this sector of the village was. There were hardly any women and children out at all, just old men and drunkards. Walking past them wouldn't have been half so bad if Katara hadn't been with him, but he could practically feel their gazes on him as he hurried on with his sister in tow. He didn't like the way they were eyeing her in particular. They all had the same, longing look in their eyes and it was, for lack of a more sophisticated phrase, very creepy. He shuddered just imagining what those men were pondering as they gazed at the waterbender. She looked calm enough and if she was nervous, her features didn't betray it at all. But there were few instances in his life when Sokka had been more nervous than he was now. He'd seen these types of men before. If he hadn't been with Katara, he was sure they would have cornered her long ago and tried to pull something unpleasant. But even though he was there, he figured their chances didn't look much better. Even he didn't pose much of a challenge to these men. If they wanted Katara, Sokka was sure it would be quite easy on their part to get rid of him. The rational part of him told him that there was no way they'd be able to take down a master swordsman and a master waterbender, but master or not, Katara wasn't nearly as strong as some of the men they passed and the men could quite easily hurt her. It didn't help that they stuck out like a sore thumb and that his sister was pretty. Sokka had always heard tales of brothers fighting off suitors and all sorts of people for their sisters, but privately, he wondered if he even had it in him to protect Katara from the burly drunkards that lounged about the streets. Even though he had purchased a new sword after he lost his space sword, he hadn't bothered to bring it and Katara didn't have her water skin, either.

Sokka sighed and suddenly wished they hadn't decided to camp out along the way to Toph's house. Their little group had disbanded when Suki returned to Kyoshi and Toph to Gaoling, but as promised, Sokka, Katara, and Aang were going to pick her up before heading to the Fire Nation to help Zuko; Suki and Ty Lee were supposed to join them there. Someone, Sokka wasn't quite sure who, had suggested camping out like old times and so Aang, Katara and Sokka found themselves sleeping out under the stars nearly every night. Sokka loved it, but now he was worried the thugs would follow them back to the campsite. He certainly didn't want them knowing where they camped while they were staying there.

"Sokka?"

His name whispered broke him from his train of thoughts and he glanced at Katara.

"I think we're being followed," she whispered, throwing a glance over her shoulder. He could hear the shuffling of footsteps behind them and a few soft laughs. The smell of wine and spirits wafted through the air and Sokka hoped the men wouldn't continue following them. But when he glanced back, they seemed to be walking at a quicker pace and Sokka just took Katara's hand and broke into a run.

"Head for the river," he said.

"Why not the camp?"

"Do you want them to know where we're staying?"

"Good point."

"And you'll have water to bend if we make it to the river," Sokka added.

Katara suddenly skidded to a halt and shook her head. "We're not going to make it to the river," she whispered, pointing at several men who had sprung up in front of them. Sokka suppressed a groan and instinctively reached for his sword but then remembered he didn't have it with him.

"I'll hold them off," he whispered. "You just go find Aang."

"Are you nuts?" Katara cried. "What are you going to hold them off with, your bad jokes?"

"I'm not sure, really," Sokka admitted, laughing nervously. "But then again, when have I ever been?"

"You're an idiot if you think I'm leaving you here, Sokka."

"Katara…" her brother began, but he was rudely thrust aside by a tall, burly drunkard.

"What have we here?" He wondered, wrapping an arm around Katara. She nearly gagged at the scent of wine emanating from his breath. "What's a pretty young thing like you doing with him?"

"My brother and I are going home, so if you don't mind…"

"Your brother?" The man glanced at Sokka and then at his companions and they all burst out laughing. "He's your brother?"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Sokka cried, indignantly.

"Nothing," they all chorused, stifling their laughter. The warrior just glared at them.

"Look, we have to go, so if you don't mind," Sokka began.

"Go? Why go anywhere?" one man asked. "The night's young, we've got lots of money and there's a pretty girl to entertain."

"Hey, that's my sister you're talking about, so watch it," Sokka snapped, scowling.

The men all laughed.

"You don't really want to go back home, do you?" the burly man asked, smiling a toothy grin at Katara.

"Yes, I do," she replied, trying to wriggle free of his grasp. "So let go of me."

"Why do all the girls fight?" he muttered. "You know, the last girl that resisted us was from Ba Sing Se. Let's just say she didn't make it home alright."

Katara just gaped at him and Sokka had half a mind to just throttle the man on the spot, but he couldn't jeopardize her safety so he settled for a different approach.

"My sister and I have to be in Gaoling by tomorrow, so we really need to go home," Sokka said, trying his best to sound polite.

"I'll tell you what," the burly man said, handing Katara off to another man who held her in a viselike grip. "Since you're so keen on taking the girl back, we'll duel for her. Winner gets the girl."

"No," Sokka protested, but he was merely given a sword and a flask of wine and told to take a stance. Sokka's gaze flickered from the sword in his sister. Katara's eyes were wide in surprise and fear and Sokka knew she was nervous for him. She suddenly looked less like a master waterbender and more like a little girl too afraid to do anything. He'd only seen that expression on her once before and it was during the Southern Raiders' attack on their tribe, minutes before they lost their mom. And suddenly, Sokka felt nervous and scared too.

"This is going to be fun," his opponent trilled.

"If you really want to duel, I'll fight you," Sokka said. "But, please, just let my sister go."

Katara, who had been struggling to free herself all this time, went still and gaped at her brother. "Sokka, what are you doing?"

"Protecting you."

"What would we do with you anyway?" the drunkard wondered.

Sokka frowned. "Don't you know who I am? I helped the Avatar save the world. I'm probably worth a lot of money…somewhere, I hope."

"So? Who would want you?"

He shrugged. "I don't know. A pirate maybe?" He didn't know if pirates would even take him but he hoped the drunkards bought his lie.

"So let me get this straight: we let the girl go, turn you in, and get rich?"

"If you let my sister go, then yes," Sokka replied.

"Deal."

"There's no deal," Katara cried, freeing herself and going to stand beside her brother.

"Just go find Aang, Katara," Sokka said. "Once you guys meet Toph in Gaoling, you can come look for me."

"No," she replied, resolutely.

The warrior groaned. "Don't be an idiot, Katara. They're letting you go, so leave."

"Sokka, I'm not leaving you here or looking for you."

"There won't be much to look for in any case," the drunkard said, grinning. "I hear the pirates are ruthless. If we're going to turn him in, we'll have to kill him."

"Just go back, Katara," Sokka pleaded.

"I won't, so stop asking and stop being an idiot, Sokka. If you stay, they'll kill you."

"They're too drunk to kill anyone properly," he whispered.

"But you'll get hurt," she protested.

"You'll be safe."

Katara sighed. "Sokka, I appreciate you trying to protect me, but getting me to leave is as pointless as trying to bring Mom back; it won't happen. I can't just leave you here."

"Why not?"

"You're my brother, idiot," she said, laughing a little and hugging him. "You're all the family I have besides Dad, Gran, and Pakku."

"Hey, don't worry," the drunkard said, smiling at Sokka. "She's going to stay anyway. Can't have her go squealing, can we?"

"Hey, you said…" Sokka began.

"Sorry, buddy. I said we'd let her go. Never said anything 'bout how far. See my buddy over there?" He gestured to a friend. "Used to be part of some military organization or something. Lost his tongue for squealing. We'll have to do the same to your sister. And don't worry," he laughed, bringing up his sword and making their eyes widen. "I promise it will be painless."

Before he could do anything, Katara had drawn the water from the air around her and frozen the man's feet in solid ice. With a grunt, the drunkard shattered the ice and made a beeline for the siblings. Sokka took off for the woods with Katara close behind. The drunkards trailed them, though Sokka wasn't quite sure how they managed to run while downing more wine from their flasks.

"Where are we going?" Katara demanded, glancing at him.

"Not sure," Sokka admitted, ducking under a tree branch and picking up his pace.

"Well, we can't keep running forever," Katara said, following him. "Besides, I'm sure those guys are going to… disappear?"

"What? Katara, why are you stopping?" Sokka demanded, skidding to a halt and glancing at his sister.

"They're gone," Katara pointed out, glancing around. "They vanished."

"Don't be stupid. They're probably waiting to ambush us somewhere."

Aren't you smart?" One drunkard asked, emerging from a nearby bush and ambling towards Sokka. Sokka glanced down at the sword he still held and brandished it menacingly.

"Drop it, boy," the man said, pointing the blade at Katara, who was surrounding by at least six other (equally drunk) men. Katara would have waterbent them away in a heartbeat, but a sudden hand on her shoulder made her jump in surprise and drop whatever little water she had collected.

"Don't move," a voice behind her whispered. "And you won't get hurt."

Katara half turned to see a cloaked figure wearing a hood standing in the shadows. The moonlight was too dim for her to make out any his features, but he looked like a bender. A small flame flickering in his palm confirmed it.

"Who do you think you are?" A pudgy, red-faced drunk slurred. "We was supposed to take 'em to the pirates."

The hooded figure shook his head. "The girl's mine."

"Yeah and I'm the Firelord," Sokka said, sarcastically. "Now let my sister go, or…"

The flame the hooded man controlled grew bigger and brighter.

"Or what?" He demanded. "You won't do anything as long as I have her. If you really want me to let her go, you'll drop your sword."

Sokka scowled, but complied.

"I guess we can leave then," the hooded figure said, taking Katara's hand and prodding her forward while beckoning for Sokka to follow.

"You're out of your mind if you think I'm going anywhere with you," the waterbender said, struggling against his grip. She thought she heard the figure whisper her name, but she took no head and continued struggling.

"You're crazy if you think we're letting you take them without a fight," the drunkards chorused, raising their swords at the hooded figure. The siblings just braced themselves for whatever was to come, but a sudden gust of air sent all the drunkards reeling back and produced a dust cloud so thick, Sokka and Katara had trouble seeing each other though they were perhaps only three feet apart. When the sediment settled the hooded figure had vanished. The drunkards stared at the spot where the mysterious figure had been but a minute ago and screaming about ghosts and spirits, they rocketed past the siblings while clutching their wine flasks and downing as much of the red liquid as they could.

Katara and Sokka exchanged glances. Before either of them could say anything, a large, dark shape dropped down next to them, causing both of them to jump.

"That was close," the hooded figure said.

Sokka glared at him. "You are so done for now," he cried, lunging towards him. The figure sidestepped artfully and chuckled.

"Relax, guys. It's just me." Hood and cloak came off to reveal a certain airbender, grinning widely.

"Aang," Katara cried, diving into his arms.

"Hey Sokka, hey Katara."

Normally, Sokka would have teased Katara about greeting Aang in such a manner, but at the moment, he didn't really have it in him. He was just glad they were saved.

"What are you doing?" Sokka wondered.

"I got worried when you guys didn't come back to camp," he admitted, looking down at Katara who still hadn't let go of him yet. But then he looked at Sokka and smiled. "Besides, a good friend once said he always had my back. I'm just repaying the favor."

"By pretending to capture us?" Sokka asked.

"Hey, I wasn't actually going to. All you had to do was come with me when I said we should leave," Aang said. "I didn't think you'd get all defensive and try to attack me."

Sokka grinned, sheepishly. "Sorry. Guess your charade worked a little too well. Thanks for the save, though."

"Anytime."

"Let's go back to camp. And Katara," the warrior said, pulling his sister along. "Let the kid breathe."

"You're hilarious, Sokka." She returned, rolling her eyes.

"Hey, I'm not the one who practically jumped him. Besides, I don't see why he gets a hug. I'm the one who almost got skewered back there, remember? I should get the hug."

"Should I tuck you in before you go to bed too?" His sister wondered. "Maybe I'll read you a bedtime story and sing you a lullaby."

"Oh, ha-ha. Very funny," he muttered.

They made it back to camp in no time. It was already late, so Katara went straight to sleep, but Sokka couldn't. It was a little chilly at night, so the three slept against Appa for warmth but even in spite of how comfortable they were Sokka lay awake, gazing at the stars and thinking things over until a voice issued from the dark.

"Are you still up, Sokka?" Aang asked.

"Yeah," he sighed. "I'm a lousy brother."

"Where did that come from?"

"When my dad left to fight in the war, I made a promise to always protect Katara, but I couldn't even protect her from a bunch of drunk guys. I tried to trick them into turning me in for ransom or something, but they were going hurt her anyway."

"That doesn't make you a lousy brother," the airbender objected.

"Yes it does," Sokka sighed. "If I can't even protect her from a bunch of drunk guys, how am I supposed to protect her from bigger threats?"

"Just because you couldn't protect her this one time doesn't mean you can't protect her at all. People slip up sometimes."

"I can't afford to slip up," Sokka muttered. "If I had slipped up during the war, or even today, Katara would be dead."

"But she's not," Aang pointed out. Sokka just nodded, gazing at his sister who was sleeping between them. She was shivering slightly, so he just drew up her blanket and Katara's shivering subsided.

"Not yet," Sokka corrected. "But I won't be around to protect her all the time."

"True," the airbender consented. "But you won't need to. She can protect herself just fine."

"But she's still my little sister. I can't just break my promise because we're older now and because the war is over. And I can't afford to lose her."

"Considering everything we've been through and that Katara never once got really hurt, I think you do a good job protecting her. And if it makes a difference, I don't think you've broken your promise."

Sokka gave him a small smile. "Yeah, I guess. Thanks, Aang."

Aang just smiled. Katara stirred in her sleep between them and turned over so she was facing Aang. Unconsciously, she mumbled Aang's name and Sokka had to resist the urge to laugh. Without warning, she snuggled closer to the airbender, sighing in content, a beautiful smile gracing her features. Sokka didn't need to be told the airbender was blushing in the darkness.

"'Night, Sokka," Aang said, hastily, attempting to put some distance between himself and the waterbender so her brother wouldn't be angry. Katara instinctively moved closer to him and Sokka just chuckled.

"'Night, Aang."

He'd have to work on their sleeping arrangements, he realized, but for now he'd let his sister and the airbender rest in peace. There would be plenty of time for him to tease and embarrass them the following morning.

* * *

_Thanks for reading and for all the reviews I've gotten so far. You're all wonderful! ^-^_

_~ Cassidy A._

_P.S. Isn't The Legend of Korra amazing? I love how different yet similar it is to ATLA. And with all the good Korra fics and fanart out there, I caved in an wrote one myself even though I was going to wait until the series had progressed a little further. But hey, when your muse gives you ideas, you go with it (otherwise you forget them and can't remember them when you want to ^^). But Korra looks so promising and I can't wait to see more! (:_


	91. In Loving Memory

A/N: Goodness, it's been exactly a month since I updated! This is probably the longest break I've ever taken from this collection. ^^' Anyway, here's another chapter (finally! ^-^). As usual, I've uploaded this months after I got the request and I don't really have much of an excuse for it, other than things were rather hectic for a while, but now that they've settled down, I plan on updating more often. Anyway, all credit for this chapter goes to Coolera (sorry for the ridiculously long wait and thanks for the request). I hope this is alright. Enjoy! :)

_P.S. There's one or two references to The Legend of Korra, but nothing major or spoilery. ^^_

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything. _

* * *

**XCI. In Loving Memory**

"_When someone you love becomes a memory, the memory becomes a treasure._"

~ Unknown

It was an unusually cool summer morning when Aang and his friends landed at the Southern Air Temple. A gentle breeze was whistling through the eaves and golden rays of sunshine were bathing everything in a soft, warm light. Despite the debris lying about the place, the Southern Air Temple looked remarkably well for an area that had been uninhabited for over a century. Yet, despite the pleasant weather and the sunshine that seemed to make the place glow, a sense of sadness pervaded the air. Perhaps it had something to do with the nature of their visit or perhaps it had always been like that. Katara really couldn't say. All she knew was that their visit this time was for more than a vacation.

Honestly, Katara wasn't sure how they had come up with the idea. They'd all needed a break and had all put forth suggestions as to where they should go, but had somehow settled on the Southern Air Temple. Sokka had started planning an agenda of what they'd do when they reached, but Aang had been silent the whole time. It wasn't until he mentioned the dead airbenders and Fire Nation soldiers that Sokka had abandoned any plans of making an itinerary (though why he had started one in the first place, was beyond Katara). Someone- Katara couldn't quite remember who- had suggested having a memorial service for all the airbenders and Aang had quietly agreed and said it would have been the right thing to do. So they had packed right away and left for the Temple as soon as possible. Now that they were here, though, Katara almost wished they weren't. She hadn't returned to the Air Temple since the first time she had been there with Sokka and Aang. It was bad enough seeing all the bodies then, but seeing them a second time was a little too much. She'd seen things more gruesome than a skeleton, but knowing they'd have to take care of all the remains of the fallen was a little unsettling.

The Temple seemed eerily silent as they all stood at the base and gazed upwards at the massive towers looming over them. Sokka shifted uncomfortably and Suki and Toph were simply starting at their feet, unsure of what to do. Zuko was gazing at the air-ball courts in the distance and Katara was simply watching Aang who gazed at the temple with a blank expression on his face. It was a while before the airbender made a move to go, but he didn't get very far before Sokka stopped him.

"Aang, why don't you and Katara go ahead? The rest of us have some other things to take care of."

Everyone exchanged glances before looking at Sokka.

"Like what?" Toph demanded, blowing a strand of hair out of her face.

"It's a surprise for Aang," Sokka said, mysteriously. Aang simply shrugged and went ahead with Katara, leaving Sokka to deal with the others.

"What are you up to?" Suki demanded, once the airbender was out of earshot.

Sokka gave a small smile. "I was just thinking: since Aang is probably going to be feeling down after…well, you know…I thought maybe we could cheer him up."

"And how are we supposed to do that?" Toph wondered.

"I was thinking, since we're here, we could do airbender stuff all day."

"Airbender stuff?" Zuko echoed, raising an eyebrow inquiringly. "What are you talking about?"

Sokka grinned. "Just because this is a memorial for the airbenders doesn't mean it has to be gloomy. I mean, these people were geniuses. They came up with some pretty cool stuff."

"Like?"

"Well, Aang once told me about the fruit pies the monks used to make and…"

"Food," Toph groaned. "I should've known."

"Well, there are other things to do besides eat," Sokka said. "The first time Katara and I came here, Aang showed us how to play airball."

"Is that played in that weird field-like thing over there?" Zuko asked, pointing at the playing field.

Sokka nodded. "Obviously, if we play, we're going to have to modify the game a bit because we're not all airbenders, but I think it's doable."

"You'll have to explain the rules then," Suki said, smiling.

"It's fairly straightforward," Sokka began, and he set to explaining the rules while Katara and Aang disappeared from sight.

* * *

The interiors of the Southern Air Temple had been as dark and dank as they were the first time Katara had ventured within their hallowed halls. A fine layer of dust blanketed everything and an eerie silence pervaded the air. She wanted to ask Aang where they were going, but the silence was almost deafening and she was scared to break it. And she was a little scared about making Aang feel uncomfortable. For her, Aang had always been something of an open book, and it was usually easy for her to read his emotions, but now she couldn't. She honestly had no idea if the young Avatar was nervous or upset; it was somewhat difficult to tell.

Aang led them, mostly in silence, through the maze of corridors before leading her to the grounds out back. Katara shuddered just thinking about the gruesome work that lay ahead of them, but she wanted to help Aang. It was the right thing to do and she knew she'd never be able to live with herself and her guilty conscience if she simply abandoned Aang. The airbender must have noticed her uneasiness and stopped briefly before they continued.

"You don't have to do this if you don't want to," the airbender said, offering the waterbender a small smile. "I know you're probably worried about it."

Katara simply gazed at Aang, surprised. She wondered how he did it, how he could be so selfless and manage to worry about her at a time like this.

"I'm not worried about helping you, Aang," She said hastily, trying to explain. "I'm worried about how you'll do it. This must be so hard for you."

The airbender shrugged and laced his fingers with hers, smiling softly to show her he was okay. "I'll be alright," he promised. "I'm still sad, but I've accepted that I'm really the last airbender. I can never bring them back, but that doesn't mean I can't honor them."

Katara nodded, smiling gently and following him outside to complete the daunting task that lay ahead of them.

It took them a good long while to finish the memorial service, but at last, it was done. The remains of all the fallen, airbenders and firebenders alike had been properly taken care of when Aang and Katara paused to catch their breath. The place suddenly seemed more cheerful somehow, as if all the spirits of the departed knew their bodies had been put to rest and suddenly, Katara felt so much more comfortable and at ease. She closed her eyes and listened to the gentle wind that whispered unintelligibly to them. Suddenly, a faint tolling sound was heard and it grew progressively louder as Katara glanced at Aang who had a sad sort of smile on his face.

"It's the wind chimes," he explained, as the chimes littered throughout the Temple began to sound, creating a bittersweet sort of melody. "The monks had this theory that one of the reasons the spirits would make the chimes move was to let the monks know they were at peace. Somewhere, I'm sure there are spirits feeling relieved."

"I think they'd be proud of you," Katara said, smiling up at the airbender who now stood taller than her. Aang simply shrugged modestly, before letting Katara lead him back the way they came. "We should probably find out what Sokka's up to."

They found Sokka and the others waiting by the playing field and the warrior looked excited when he noticed them approaching. At first, neither Katara nor Aang could make sense of the long speech he began giving, but at last, they realized this was Sokka's way of trying to cheer Aang up if the airbender was in a dismal mood.

"Thanks, Sokka," Aang said, once the warrior had finished his rather lengthy speech explaining why he had decided to surprise Aang. "But you guys really didn't need to."

Sokka simply shrugged. "Just thought it would be a good idea."

"Hey, Meathead," Toph said, kicking a rock. "Are you just going to talk all day or are you going to show Twinkle Toes his surprise."

Sokka just grinned and produced the ball. "We came up with a way for us to play airball. Zuko and I found out that you don't just need bending to play. So we're going to play a game to see how well it would work."

"Sounds like fun," the airbender said, grinning.

Rules (revised ones) were quickly explained for Aang and Katara's benefit and teams were established with Aang, Katara, and Suki on one and Sokka, Zuko, and Toph, on the other. According to the revised rules, Aang could only use airbending and the others were allowed to bend (so long as Zuko didn't burn the ball or Katara and Toph didn't destroy it). Sokka and Suki acted as goalkeepers and thus the match began.

It took a while for the others to get used to playing on the field, but after a few practice matches, everyone had seemed pretty comfortable. Toph had been a little worried that the wooden poles that comprised the playing field would hinder her "vision" but she and Aang had bent the earth around the poles, encasing them in rock, for her to see. Sokka and Suki were worried that their friends had the advantage by being able to bend, but the ball was discovered to be light enough to catch or kick, so they felt much better about playing with and against benders.

Admittedly, the game was a lot of fun. Despite Aang having played the game before, they were all more or less evenly matched and the game took much longer to win than either team thought possible. Aang, Katara, and Suki won by a very slim margin, one goal to be exact, but only because Sokka had sneezed just as the ball was heading past him for the goal. He'd complained at first of course, but then abandoned their good-natured fight in favor of searching for some food. He wasted no time in having Aang direct them to the kitchen so they could eat. After clearing the old kitchen and gathering supplies to cook something, Sokka somehow convinced Aang to make traditional Air Nomad dishes. He even went as far as to volunteer the others and himself for help and that was how everyone found themselves a half hour later, cooking like there was no tomorrow. Sokka wouldn't stop teasing Zuko about how odd he looked baking some Air Nomad pastry, but Zuko just grumbled and continued baking as if he was bored out of his mind. Sokka had his suspicions though, that the firebender secretly enjoyed it, but he kept it to himself.

The meal was ready in no time and any initial displeasure Sokka had about eating a meat-free meal faded once he tasted what everyone had made.

"I'm only going to say this once," he said, grinning between bites. "This vegetarian food is actually pretty good."

Everyone gaped at him and Sokka blinked. "What?" he demanded.

"Did you just say what I think you said?" Suki asked, staring at him and not bothering to hide the astonishment on her face.

"I said I was only going to say it once," he said, continuing to eat. "Maybe after Aang makes those famous fruit pies he keeps talking about, I'll say it again."

Aang just grinned. "If that's all it takes, then sure."

No one, save for Katara, caught the mischievous glint in his eyes.

Their meal was finished rather quickly and before anyone could ask what was planned next, Aang was already leading Katara elsewhere. Sokka began grumbling but quit when he heard Aang mention something about making those fruit pies.

Aang led Katara through a maze of passageways before the corridor gave way to a terrace, glowing in the evening sunlight. It was rather wide but completely bare except for a small oven in a corner. Below, another corridor gave way to a staircase that led to a wider terrace underneath. From their vantage point, the two could see a great deal of the Temple grounds and Katara spent a good while drinking everything in. By the time she had torn her gaze away, Aang had already produced the necessary ingredients for the fruit pies.

"Will you teach me how to make one?" Katara asked, suddenly.

The airbender blinked. "A fruit pie?" Katara nodded and Aang smiled. "If you'd like."

"I think I'd like to learn and toss one at Sokka," she admitted, giggling. "Just for the fun of it."

"Monk Gyatso and I used to do it all the time," Aang said, a faraway look in his eyes. "He said it was good cooking practice and good airbending practice. I always thought the other monks used to hate it, but Gyatso said they secretly enjoyed."

"Then I say we make some just so you can do that again," Katara said.

"Sounds like a plan," the airbender said, smiling.

It didn't take too long to make the fruit pies, especially with Katara helping. It was nearing sunset when four fresh pies were taken out of the oven to cool and Katara and Aang couldn't help laughing when they thought of how the others would get their pies. It was probably childish and immature of them to throw pies at their friends, but they didn't really care. There was some simple pleasure in this act and knowing Gyatso had done it in the past made both of them feel better.

By the time the pies had cooled, the others had wandered outside, content to just wander about and relax. Needless to say, they didn't get very much wandering or relaxing done before something soft and moist collided with them. Zuko nearly burnt down a nearby tree before he realized it was simply a pie and he shot a glare at where he thought the Avatar and waterbender to be. Suki and Toph had just started laughing at themselves and each other while Sokka held bits of pie in his hand and gaped. From their place on the terrace, Aang and Katara heard Sokka yelling Aang's name and burst out laughing like school children.

"This has been one strange day," Aang said, once their laughter had died down. "But in a good way. I enjoyed it."

Katara smiled. "I'm glad. We didn't do much though; Sokka apparently had a ton of stuff planned."

"It's alright," Aang said, shrugging. "I'm just glad you all came. It really means a lot."

"Well, I can't speak for the others," Katara said. "But I wouldn't have missed this for the world. There's no way you could have done this on your own."

Aang shrugged, wordlessly.

"They'd be proud of you," Katara said, staring off into the sunset that was bleeding colors into the sky. "They'd be proud of what you've done and what you're doing."

Aang smiled and followed her gaze out to the horizon. In a few hours, the sun would set and morning would come all too soon, bringing with it a day of packing and preparations to take them to another destination, but for now Aang was content to be at the Air Temple.

"You know," Katara said, somewhat sadly with a faraway look in her eyes. "One day, you might not be the last airbender. You'll find an amazing woman to spend the rest of your life with here and…"

Impulsively, Aang intertwined his fingers with hers, cutting her off. "I think I'd like to live elsewhere," he admitted. "And as for finding that amazing woman, I think I already have."

A faint blush was coloring his cheeks when Katara gazed up at him, her cerulean eyes wide with surprise. A similar blush worked its way across her face and Aang couldn't help laughing at the adorable expression of astonishment on her face.

"I don't really see a future without you," he told her, honestly. He said it as if was the most obvious thing in the world, smiling at her as if she should have known all along. Katara just stared at him, trying to process what he had just said.

"But you never know what could happen," the waterbender pointed out. "You could meet someone else and fall in love, get married and have kids. You could end up living here with airbenders running around all over the place."

Suddenly, with a boldness and confidence he didn't know he possessed, Aang leaned forward and kissed her gently. "I don't see myself doing any of that without you," he said, shamelessly. Katara was sure she could have melted then. It seemed Aang's grip on her was the only thing that kept her from doing so.

"Really?" she whispered, feeling nervous, giddy, excited and faint all at once.

"Really," he insisted.

"Does that mean you want to marry me someday?" she asked rather boldly, smiling up at him.

He nodded simply, that familiar blush working its way across his face once more. "Someday," he said, smiling. "I don't want to rush into things and I guess I'd have to ask your dad if I can and hope Sokka doesn't kill me and that you don't say no and…"

Katara cut him off with a kiss.

"I love you," she said breathlessly, once they had broken apart. "I thought I made that clear after the war."

The airbender simply grinned, his eyes twinkling. "I may have forgotten," he teased. "You'll have to remind me."

Katara rolled her eyes, laughing. "If you wanted me to kiss you again, you could have just asked, silly."

And as she leaned up to press her lips to his once more, Aang couldn't help thinking about how right this felt. Perhaps after they married, he and Katara wouldn't have any airbenders at all. Or perhaps all their children would be airbenders. It was far too soon to predict any of that. But he did know that regardless of what the future held, their family would be the perfect way to honor his people. Perhaps he was getting ahead of himself with all this envisioning, but in spite of that, he saw himself teaching his children all about his people, just as the monks taught him. There may have been a serious lack of airbenders at present, but Aang saw no reason for the teachings of his people to die out.

"Suddenly," the airbender said, wrapping an arm around his girlfriend. "The future seems so much brighter."

"Why's that?" Katara wondered.

"Because you're in it," Aang said, simply. "And I realized that even if my people are gone, their teachings don't have to disappear with them. There must be people somewhere out there, willing to learn about the Air Nomads."

"Like me," the waterbender offered. "If you don't mind teaching me, I'd love to learn all about your people and their traditions."

You can be the first, honorary Air Acolyte, then." Aang replied, grinning.

Katara smiled. "You really think I'm qualified for that?"

He shrugged. "I think you'd have been great no matter what type of bender you were."

Katara just laughed and kissed him once more, while the wind chimes around them tolled in the gentle breeze, as if the spirits had given them their blessings.

And somewhere, in another world where the departed looked down upon the living, Monk Gyatso smiled.

* * *

_Thanks for reading and, as always, thanks for all the support I've gotten for this collection. You guys are simply wonderful! It really means a lot! I'm still working on an expansion of Chapter 85 that a couple of people requested, so hopefully I can have that up soon. ^-^_

_~ Cassidy Alice_

_P.S. How awesome is The Legend of Korra? :)_


	92. Four Short Words

_A/N: Before I begin my usual, boring author's note, I think a thank you is very much in order. You guys are the greatest! Seriously! Over 100 faves? I can't tell you all how much it means to me! (I think I almost cried out of sheer joy. ^^) I really, truly appreciate all the support. And so many reviews for the last chapter too! It seems like if I want any feedback at all, I have to update once a month. Just kidding! I'm grateful for what I already have; it really does mean a lot._

_So, now that I'm done being sentimental, an apology is also very much in order. I was supposed to have an expansion of Chapter 85 up for Wolverinejoe and cocky-gurl as they requested, but the document I was working on failed to save or got lost. I've spent an hour trying to retrieve but to no avail, so I'll have to rewrite it. :| I'm terribly sorry and I apologize for the ridiculously long wait I've put you guys through. I'll try to have it up ASAP as I've said before. In the meantime, I thought I'd post this to tide you all over and so I can get back into updating regularly. This is a oneshot I wrote for an ATLA contest on a forum and it did rather well (surprisingly), so I hope you all enjoy it too! It may not be canon-compliant with The Legend of Korra, but there wasn't much information on certain characters, so a lot was left up to imagination. Still, I like to think something like this is plausible, but I guess the fandom will find out eventually. Anyways, happy readings! :)_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender or The Legend of Korra and I can't take credit for the title either, because I borrowed it from the Delta Goodrem song of the same name._

* * *

**XCII. Four Short Words**

_The moments of happiness we enjoy take us by surprise. It is not that we seize them, but that they seize us."_

~ Ashley Montagu

It was raining again. Outside the confines of the snug little house where Katara and Aang stayed, a merciless storm pounded away at the city, battering roofs with rain and rustling the treetops with gusts of wind. The sky was an inky black, flecked with ominous gray clouds that foretold of the intensity of the storm. Occasionally, a bolt of lightning would flash somewhere overhead and thunder pealed in the distance. Katara sat on the window-seat of the only bay window in their house and watched the storm outside. It was rare for such a storm on the second day of spring, for the cool winter weather still lingered over the city like frost on grass, but the storm was here in any case, and there was little Katara could do about it. Sighing, she rested her forehead against the cool pane of the window, staring blankly out at the landscape, shrouded in darkness and lit only by the occasional bolt of lightning. It was moments like these where Katara realized just how much she missed Aang. Their room always seemed so forlorn without him and Katara rarely ever slept there when he wasn't with her. The last time she had slept there had been two weeks ago. Aang had still been home then.

Two weeks. Had it really only been two weeks? It seemed like he was gone so much longer. He'd been summoned to Ba Sing Se to meet with the Earth King two weeks ago, but he wasn't scheduled to return until the end of the week. Katara wasn't sure how she was going to make it through the week. Everything seemed so different without him. It wasn't as if this was the first time he had gone away, but it was still just as hard to pass the time without him there. Even the kids seemed dismal without him around. Sighing, Katara leaned back and shifted her position, too tired to go back to her room. On dismal nights like these where the rain hammered away on the roof and thunder pealed in the distance, she and Aang would often stay up and watch the storm. Neither one of them cared much for storms, but there was some intrinsic beauty that made watching them enjoyable. And there was the added bonus of sitting wrapped up in her husband's arms and talking the night away. But tonight, that wouldn't be possible. Aang was far away, probably sleeping soundly after a tiring day at work. She wondered if he missed her as much as she missed him. She wished there was some way he'd return that night, but she knew it wasn't possible. She felt tears prick at the back of her eyes and, curling up on her side, mentally berated herself.

"Get a grip, Katara," she muttered to herself. "Aang will be back soon." And closing her eyes in an attempt to get some sleep, she nodded off.

* * *

"Mama!"

Katara, who had been dozing on the window-seat, was jolted awake and glanced around the dimly lit room, startled. It was still fairly early in the morning and the storm outside hadn't ceased. Something must have been wrong because her children would have already called for her if the storm had frightened them. Katara made a move to get up and check on the kids, but before she could, Tenzin made a beeline for her, followed by Kya and Bumi.

"Mama, there's a spirit under Tenzin's bed," Kya said, clutching her doll, while her brothers nodded vigorously.

"I saw it," Bumi added, rubbing his eyes sleepily.

"I'm scared," Tenzin said.

Katara smiled. "I'll go find this _spirit_," she laughed, getting up and starting for the children's room. She'd only taken three steps when Bumi attached himself to her leg.

"No, Mama, don't go in there. It'll eat you," he said, looking up at her with wide eyes full of worry.

"It won't eat me," she assured him, smiling down at her son. "And if it does, I'm sure my three, strong, children can save me."

Bumi just watched apprehensively as she entered the dark room. After about a minute, Tenzin called out for her and Kya was clutching her doll so tightly, the doll likely would have suffocated if it had been alive.

"You three can go back in there now," Katara said, exiting their room. "It was just Momo chasing bugs."

Tenzin giggled, but instead of going back to his bed, followed his mother to the sitting room and clambered up to sit on her lap when she had taken her place on the window-seat again. Kya and Bumi followed suit, sitting on either side of their mother.

"I'm not sleepy," Bumi yawned, contradicting himself.

Katara chuckled. "That yawn says otherwise."

"Can we sleep with you?" Kya asked, drowsily.

"If you'd like," Katara replied, as another clap of thunder sounded overhead.

Kya and Bumi nodded. Tenzin was already half asleep in her lap, so Kya curled up next to her mother and closed her eyes.

"I wanna stay up with you," Bumi protested, in spite of his drooping eyelids.

"Maybe tomorrow," Katara said. "For now, get some sleep."

Bumi didn't need to be told twice. He was fast asleep as soon as he closed his eyes. Stifling a laugh, Katara smoothed down his unruly hair and gave her children each a kiss.

"Sweet dreams," she whispered, smiling down at the three of them.

* * *

It was fairly early when Katara awoke the following morning. A steady rain was still hammering upon the roof, but last night's storm had been ushered away. The day, however, still promised to be a gloomy one, and Katara sighed. Tenzin shifted slightly on her lap and the waterbender smiled. All three of the children were still fast asleep, and though Katara knew she should have gotten a head start on the morning chores, she was content just to sit and glance out the window, while her children slept next to her (or on her, in Tenzin's case). It was a little difficult for her to extricate herself from the position she was in and she didn't want to wake Tenzin up by trying to get up.

Katara smiled to herself, watching the three young children sleep. She'd always wanted children and as a little girl, she'd dreamed of having a family, but now, it all felt so surreal. She was convinced she was the luckiest woman alive to be blessed with such a wonderful family and even luckier because her daughter was a waterbender. At nearly six years old, Kya had mastered the basics of waterbending and trained as often as she could with Katara. Even though Katara had helped Aang become a master, she felt extremely lucky to be able to train her daughter. Katara never had the opportunity to train with her mother, so she was thrilled to be able to train Kya. Bumi wasn't a bender at all and Tenzin wasn't able to bend anything either, but he was three weeks short of his third birthday and, being so young, there was still a chance he (and perhaps even Bumi) could be benders yet. Quite honestly, though, she didn't care what elements her children could or couldn't bend; they were her children and she loved them unconditionally.

Kya, Bumi, and Tenzin woke up a couple of hours later, just in time to help their mother make breakfast. Katara gave them small tasks to do, but the three of them seemed content just to be able to set the table or carry something from the kitchen. Katara watched them run to and fro, carrying the plates, napkins, and other necessary items, and chuckled to herself. It wouldn't be too long before all that became boring.

"Can we eat?" Bumi demanded, hoisting himself into his chair. Katara slipped into her place and handed him a plate of food.

"You're so much like your uncle," she laughed, shaking her head.

"Uncle Sokka's not a vegimaternian," Tenzin pointed out.

"Vegetarian, sweetie," Katara corrected. "And he's not, but Bumi has his appetite."

"I can't help it," the four year old said, his mouth full of food. "You make the best food, Mama."

Katara simply laughed.

Breakfast was over shortly and as soon as the table had been cleared, Katara set herself to the arduous task of giving the kids a bath. Kya and Bumi were no trouble at all but Tenzin seemed more content to play with Momo than anything else.

"Bath time, little guy," Katara said, scooping him up. Tenzin giggled as she helped him out of his clothes and gently deposited him in the tub.

"Mama, look," he said. "I can waterbend."

Katara watched as he scooped up some water and let it trickle between his tiny fingers. She chuckled.

"Not quite," she smiled, ruffling his hair. "But one day, maybe."

"I wanna be a waterbender like you and Daddy."

"Maybe you will," Katara mused. Tenzin certainly liked to play in the water.

"Will you teach me?" Tenzin asked.

"If you're a waterbender? Of course I will, though your father better help too"

"What if I'm not a waterbender?"

"Doesn't mean we'll love you any less," she replied, toweling him dry as soon as he was finished.

With all the morning chores finished, the day stretched free and empty before them. Katara hardly knew what to do to pass the time. The children played for a bit, but quickly grew bored. It was still raining outside, so the four were confined indoors and that hardly helped. By evening, they had exhausted every game they could possibly play and by dinnertime, they were so bored, they had taken to watching a second storm rage outside while they ate. After the dishes were cleared, the four simply sat and gazed out the window, too tired to do anything else. Kya was leaning against the window, her forehead pressed against the pane and watching the rain slide down the window. Bumi was fiddling with a little wooden warrior Aang had bought for him some time ago and Tenzin was watching him.

"Mama, can I be a warrior?" Bumi asked, suddenly.

"Uh…sure," Katara replied, laughing a little at his sudden and rather odd question.

"I wanna be the bestest warrior in the whole wide world," Bumi declared, grinning up at Katara.

"I think you'd be good at anything," Katara replied, grinning back at him. "As long as you put your mind to it."

"So you and Dad don't mind that none of us are airbenders?" Kya asked, glancing at her mother.

"Your father and I love you all, regardless of whether or not you are airbenders. Not being an airbender doesn't make you less special and doesn't mean we love you less."

"I don't wanna be a bender," Bumi said, fiddling with his warrior's arm. "Dad says I'm…um…yoo-neek."

"You all are," Katara said. "Speaking of your father, I wonder how he's doing."

"When is Dad coming back?" Kya wondered, staring out the window. Somewhere in the distance, a clap of thunder sounded, signaling the start of another storm, and the little waterbender flinched.

"End of the week," Katara replied, scooping up Tenzin who was trying to climb over Bumi to get to the window.

"Will he bring us presents?" Tenzin asked eagerly, clapping his hands and smiling brightly.

"I don't know," his mother admitted. "We'll see."

"I miss him," Kya said softly, curling up beside her mother. Katara simply smiled and pulled her into a hug.

"I know, sweetie, but he'll be back soon."

"I wish he could come back today," Bumi said. "Then we could play warrior together."

"It'd be tough flying back in this storm and I don't think Appa would like it very much."

"But Appa's fast," Bumi said, waving his arms as if to emphasize the point. "And Dad's the Avatar."

"What does that have to do with the storm?" Katara wondered.

Bumi shrugged. "I dunno."

The four lapsed back into silence, listening to the storm. Despite the hour, none of the kids felt sleepy and judging by how well they slept last night, Katara knew they wouldn't sleep in their own rooms tonight.

"Mama, I saw something outside," Kya cried, suddenly, breaking free from her mother's embrace and pressing her forehead against the window. "Mama, look."

"I don't see anything, Kya," Katara said, following her daughter's gaze.

"That's because you're looking in the wrong direction, Katara."

With a cry, the waterbender spun around.

"Aang!"

"Dad!"

Before Aang could greet them all, his children had rushed to hug him, crowding around him and jumping up and down.

"You're back!"

"Did you bring us presents?"

"I missed you, Dad."

"We were bored without you."

Aang laughed. "Whoa, slow down, kids. One at a time."

"I can't believe you're back so soon, Aang," Katara said, coming to give him a hug. "I thought you wouldn't return until the end of the week."

The Avatar smiled and gave her a quick kiss. "And miss my wife's birthday? Not on your life."

Katara smiled and simply threw her arms around him, thankful he was back. Honestly, she hadn't even remembered her birthday was tomorrow because she was so busy missing Aang and trying to distract herself and the kids.

"We missed you," Tenzin cried, attaching himself to Aang's leg.

"A lot," Bumi added. Kya nodded emphatically.

"I missed you all too," Aang said, scooping up his little son and smiling at all of them. "Appa and I came home as fast as we could."

"That wouldn't explain why you're partially covered in fur, would it?" Katara wondered, amused.

Aang gave her an apologetic smile. "Sorry. Appa's shedding again."

Katara laughed. "It's alright."

"And I'm sorry I don't have a present for you either," the airbender said, grinning sheepishly. "Appa and I were flying as fast as we could to make it home in time."

Katara leaned up and kissed him. "You're my present. Thanks for coming back, Aang."

"Did you miss us?" Tenzin wondered.

"Of course I did," Aang laughed. "I missed all of you."

"We missed you too," Tenzin said, hugging him. "We…"

He broke off midsentence and sneezed, rocketing out of his father's arms and hovering in the air for a split second before landing back in Aang's arms. Katara and Aang gaped at Tenzin who merely blinked back as strands of Appa's shed fur rained down around them. Suddenly, Katara laughed in delight and threw her arms around them, kissing Aang and Tenzin. Kya grinned and Bumi cheered.

Smiling like a fool, Aang grinned at his wife. "Katara, Tenzin's an airbender."

* * *

_Did I mention how awesome each and every one of you are? Thanks for reading and for all the lovely reviews I've gotten so far! It means a lot! ^-^_

_~ Cassidy Alice_


	93. Morning Glory

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything._

* * *

**XCIII. Morning Glory**

_"There's beauty in the silver singing river, there's beauty in the sunrise in the sky. But none of these and nothing else can match the beauty, that I remember in my true love's eyes"_

Bob Dylan

Aang lay wide awake in bed, staring blankly at the ceiling and trying to get to sleep. He'd been trying ever since midnight, but sleep seemed to evade him that night. He wasn't sure what it was exactly that was keeping him up, but he wished whatever it was, it would cease and let him sleep but unfortunately, this night (like so many other nights), he was denied that luxury. Sighing, Aang shifted his gaze from the ceiling to the window. He couldn't see much from where he was sitting, but he was able to make out the midnight black sky flecked with stars, shimmering like millions of lights. If the weather had been nicer, he would have probably ventured out to get a better look, but it was too cold to wander out the way he was dressed and he didn't really feel like getting dressed properly to go out. So instead, he decided on wandering the darkened corridors of the Southern Air Temple in an attempt to see if sleep would find him. He slowly got out of bed, careful not to disturb his wife, who was sleeping beside him, and slipped into his shoes. Katara seemed to sense his absence and stirred in her sleep, frowning a little, but Aang just drew up the blankets and she seemed to relax a bit.

The corridors in the Southern Air Temple were rather chilly, but Aang didn't really mind. He was used to the cold winters in the Patola Mountains and, after spending so much time in the Fire Nation and the Earth Kingdom where the winters tended to be mild, he found he actually liked the cold. Katara seemed to enjoy it too, which was an added bonus. He didn't know how long they'd be here before his restless spirit forced him to move again in true nomad fashion, but he intended to make the most of it. He'd taken Katara to see the snow a little higher up on the mountain, but he had yet to show her some of the most amazing sights. There was one he was quite eager to show her, but he wasn't so sure she'd enjoy it as much, mainly because it required getting up at an ungodly hour. But it was breathtaking and Aang figured Katara would be able to forgive him for waking her up once. He wished he could show it to her today, but he was hesitant to wake her up. So he wandered the corridors debating with himself whether or not his wife would enjoy being woken up well before dawn to venture out into the cold with him.

By the time Aang had made up his mind, an hour had elapsed and it was considerably cooler. He made his way back to the room, only to find Katara curled up in ball and sleeping fitfully. She had once told him that she could sense his presence when she slept because she always slept better when he was there and he found himself wondering if it was true.

"Katara?" he whispered. The waterbender stirred and buried her face deeper into her pillow. "Katara, wake up."

Katara's eyes fluttered open and she blinked drowsily. "Aang? Is something wrong?"

The airbender shook his head. "No, I just wanted to show you something."

"And this couldn't wait until morning?" she murmured, sitting up and rubbing her eyes.

"No."

"Alright. What is it?"

"You'll see. Just get dressed."

Katara wordlessly complied and was ready a few minutes later. Aang helped her into her parka before glancing out the window.

"Are you all bundled up?"

Katara nodded drowsily, not bothering to stifle her yawn. "Honestly Aang, what's so important that you had to wake me up in the middle of the night?"

"Well," he drawled. He suddenly looked guilty. "It's not really important, but…"

Katara yawned. "Then I'm going back to bed," she mumbled, turning around and shuffling back to their room.

"Please, Katara?" Aang begged. "I know you're sleepy, but just this once. You can hate me all you want after you've seen this."

"How long will it take?" Katara asked, gazing up at Aang.

He shrugged. "Not very long, but I promise you can go to sleep afterwards."

"If you say so," she said, rubbing at her eyes. Aang disappeared to retrieve something and when he returned, Katara noticed he was holding two blankets.

"What are those for?"

"You'll see," he said, taking her hand and gently pulling her along.

Outside, the sky was still dark and everything was silent. Katara shivered in the cold winter air as Aang led her down to where Appa was resting. The giant bison opened one eye as the airbender approached and grunted. Aang grinned and Appa clambered up to his feet, stopping to lick Aang in the process.

"Oh, Aang, you didn't wake Appa up, did you?"

"No," the airbender replied. "Besides, when we were little, he'd wake me up all the time to do this."

"Aang, if you don't tell me what you're up to, I swear I'll…"

"If I told you, it would ruin the surprise," he told Katara, grinning. He tossed the blankets into Appa's saddle and helped Katara up. By now, Appa was fully awake and practically prancing. He was flying even before Aang had been able to tell him to take off.

"You can sleep now if you want," he offered. "I'll wake you up later."

Katara probably would have if her curiosity hadn't been piqued. She had assumed Aang would take them somewhere within walking distance, but clearly wherever they were going was not close by. Appa was flying steadily higher and heading deeper into the mountain range. The mountains they passed were tall, jagged formations that rose up to dizzying heights. Their tops where blanketed in a thick layer of snow and their summits completely hidden by clouds. Katara gazed in wonder at the giant mountains as they flew past them. Despite being large earthen structures, there was something breathtaking about them and she spent a few minutes gazing at their surroundings before drifting off to sleep.

She awoke again to Aang shaking her awake. He was smiling and for a moment, Katara couldn't figure out where she was, but when she was finally awake enough to take stock of her surroundings, she realized they were atop one of the mountains. Aang had airbent the saddle down at some point, allowing Appa to lounge lazily in the snow that covered the peaks. All around them, as far as eye could see, was an ocean of big, fluffy clouds. They looked like giant heaps of cotton suspended in the sky and it seemed as if touching them would be the easiest thing in the world. The stars above twinkled brighter than ever and Katara thought that they looked ten times prettier up here than they did from below.

"Where are we?" Katara asked, her breath coming in wisps in the crisp, cold mountain air.

Aang smiled and wrapped one of the blankets around her, wrapping the other around himself. "This is the summit of the highest mountain in the Patola range."

"And why are we up here?" Katara demanded, curling up next to him.

"You'll see soon," he promised, kissing her forehead.

Katara sighed. This had better be good, she thought. For the first time since their arrival, she noticed where the saddled was placed. The summit was actually a small plateau and Aang had placed the saddle close to the edge. If Katara looked over the rim of the saddle, she could see the thin, wispy clouds that floated below them, and could catch occasional glimpses of the land below.

"Why are we here, Aang?" She asked again.

"Gyatso used to bring me here once in a while," the airbender admitted, a faraway look in his eyes. "I used to hate it. He'd wake me up really, really early and we'd walk part of the way and then take a bison to get up here. And then, we used to sit. I swear, I grumbled about it the whole time and I probably came off as uninterested to Gyatso. But he was patient and he'd just sit next to me and we'd talk about things for a while."

His wife yawned. "Please tell me you didn't bring me up here to talk. I don't mean to be rude, but we didn't have to come here to talk this early. It's probably almost dawn by now."

"I know," he admitted. "But we're not here just to talk."

"Then why are we here?" She demanded for what seemed like the hundredth time.

"Just wait a few more minutes."

Katara sighed and rested her head on his shoulder. "So why exactly are we in Appa's saddle?"

"Do you want to sit in the snow and freeze?" Aang chuckled.

"No," she replied, laughing. "I don't. Although Appa doesn't seem to mind it."

"He's got layers of fur," Aang pointed out. "He's fine."

Just watching him is making me cold," Katara said, shivering despite the thick parka she wore and the blanket she was wrapped in.

Aang just wrapped his arms around her and pulled her closer. "Better?"

She nodded, closing her eyes. Aang gently nudged her a second later and Katara's eyes snapped open.

"Look," he said, pointing at the horizon where the dark blue, early morning sky met the sea of clouds. A sliver of light was pushing up past the horizon and Katara watched eagerly. Slowly but surely, the light grew brighter until a soft, warm pinkish light was spilling over the horizon. Above them, the stars faded and the dark skies dimmed to reveal a lighter blue. The light from the horizon grew, slowly radiating outwards. Katara's breath caught in her throat when she noticed the clouds all around them glowing in the soft pink light. Aang smiled at the expression on her face and turned his gaze back to the sunrise. By then, nearly half the sun was peeking over the horizon and already, he could feel the warmth of its rays on his face. Katara seemed captivated by the entire thing and Aang just smiled all the wider, knowing she was enjoying herself.

"It's amazing," she breathed, turning her gaze to Aang once the sun had risen completely. "I've watched the sun rise before, but it was nothing compared to this."

"That's basically what I told Gyatso the first time he brought me up here," Aang replied, grinning down at her. "And he laughed and said one day I'd find something far more beautiful than the sunrise. Turns out he was right."

Katara just shook her head, smiling all the while. "You know he wasn't referring to me."

"I'm not really sure what he was referring to," Aang admitted. "He always used to say one day I'd find someone special to forge new memories with, whether it was something as simple as this, or something big, like raising a family.

Katara just laughed. "What am I going to do with you?"

Aang grinned and airbent the saddle back up onto Appa. After making sure it was on properly, they began their journey back. It was still fairly early and Katara looked sleepy, but they spent the journey back talking, until Katara finally dozed off. By the time they had returned to the temple, Katara was fast asleep with a soft smile gracing her features. Aang scooped her up, blankets and all, and set off for their room, careful not to disturb her. When he set her down, Katara's eyes fluttered open and she leaned up to give him a quick kiss.

"Thanks, Aang," she murmured, shifting under the covers. "It was beautiful. I'll always remember it."

"You're welcome," he whispered, as she closed her eyes again and nestled deeper into him. It had been a beautiful sunrise but, privately, he thought watching Katara sleep with that heartbreakingly beautiful smile on her face was a much prettier sight. But he was glad she had enjoyed it. Watching the sunrise from the mountain top never ceased to amaze him. Even though he had seen more sunrises than he could count, there was something captivating about watching it from atop a mountain. The way the snow glittered in the light, the way the clouds drank the color of the sun- it was amazing. And as Aang fell asleep beside Katara, he found himself looking forward to all the sunrises they would watch in the future and the new memories they'd forge together.


	94. Treasures and Trinkets

_A/N: Hello, Cassidy here. XD I'm really sorry for not having a proper chapter up like I promised last time, but I've been busy working on several other projects and recently my laptop got infected with a virus and I had to erase my hard-drive, loosing all my files in the process. I do have the request from Wolverine Joe and cocky-gurl written, in spite of that that though, and it's nearly done, but between working on entries for Kataang Week 2012 and other projects, I don't know when I'll have it up. But, all the same, I'm aiming to have up at the end of this week, as soon as Kataang Week is over. I'm terribly sorry for the ridiculously long wait, but I truly appreciate how patient everyone is. ^^ Anyway, this chapter is something in between a drabble and a oneshot. I was playing around with prompt ideas for Kataang Week and ended up with this. My actual entry has been posted in a separate collection, but I decided to just throw this in here because I haven't updated in a while and I owe some sort of explanation for taking forever to get this request up (even if it a rather lame excuse and apology ^^') Anyway, I hope this is decent! Enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything! ^^ _

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**XCIV. Treasures and Trinkets**

_"If out of all mankind one finds a single friend, he has found something more precious than any treasure, since there is nothing in the world so valuable that it can be compared to a real friend."_

~ Andreas Capellanus

Katara never really gave her future much thought. Aside from dreaming about an adventure or a potential boyfriend now and again, she didn't spend much time wondering about her future. With a war going on, there wasn't really much to think about other than making it through the day. But even when she did find time to daydream, she never would've guessed she'd be undertaking such an adventure, much less to be undertaking it with the Avatar. So when Aang gave her a necklace to replace her mother's lost one, prompting Sokka to tease him about being in love, Katara had to wonder if Aang really knew what giving a girl a necklace meant. Of course, she wasn't given sufficient time to dwell on that thought because they'd run into a traveler who'd ushered them on to Makapu Village and to have their fortunes read. Katara jumped at the chance to learn about her future. Sokka may not have seen the point in having his fortune told, but Katara was excited about it and eager to learn what her future held. She wasn't disappointed when she found out either. She wasn't one to spend hours daydreaming over her future, but knowing she was going to marry a powerful bender, or at least being told that, made her content. Of course, now that she knew, she couldn't stop wondering just who this powerful bender was.

The more she thought about her fortune, the more she began to daydream. She didn't consider herself extraordinary by any means so it wasn't likely that she'd ever run into many powerful benders. So she spent most of their stay in Makapu Village mulling over her fortune and the identity of this mysterious, powerful bender, until the sudden volcanic eruption. Amidst the falling ash and the lava, Sokka pointed out something she had overlooked.

"Man, sometimes I forget what a powerful bender that kid is."

A strange expression crossed Katara's face. "Wait, what did you say?"

"Nothing, just that Aang is one powerful bender."

"I suppose he is," Katara mused, wondering if perhaps, just perhaps, Aunt Wu's prediction might have made Aang a possible candidate. It seemed funny to ponder, but Katara couldn't help wondering. That night, as she was returning to their campsite from a nearby stream, she caught sight of Aang placing something on her sleeping bag before he quickly returned to Appa's side. Kneeling down to pick it up, she discovered it was a panda lily and smiled to herself, inhaling the flower's intoxicating sweet scent. Aang had already made a necklace to replace her mother's lost one, so she didn't see why he needed to give her a flower, but she appreciated the gesture all the same. And as she traced the petals, she found herself wishing their friendship and the special bond they shared, would blossom and grow, just like the panda lily she held in her hands

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_Thanks for reading and thank you so much for all the lovely reviews! You guys are the best! ^-^_

_~Cassidy Alice_


	95. Cactus Juice Shenanigans

_A/N: So, as promised, here's the request from Wolveringjoe and cocky-gurl, nearly 5 months and 10 chapters later. I'm so sorry for the ridiculously long wait, but this request was harder to write than others for some reason. Honestly, I'm almost ashamed to post this because I don't think I did the requests any justice at all (in fact, I think it may be my worst chapter yet so consider this a friendly warning _^^'_), but the last time I said that, my chapter was apparently not all that bad given the positive feedback I got. So, I'm hoping (somehow) that this chapter is decent and doesn't turn readers away. If nothing else, I hope it gives people a good laugh at my lame attempt to write something humorous, and somehow brightens their day, even if it's just the tiniest bit. XD Anyways, enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything. _

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**XCV. Cactus Juice Shenanigans**

_"Life isn't weird; it's just the people in it."_

~ Unknown

Katara rested her head in her arms and groaned. "I can't believe this."

Sokka was smiling sheepishly and Suki was glaring at him. Their little celebration was just short of a disaster; Sokka's secret stash of cactus juice had unknowingly been served to everyone with their dinner and although Sokka had warned Aang, Katara and Suki not to drink it, he'd failed to warn his father and his grandparents, resulting in a half-empty bottle of the potent juice and an intoxicated Momo. Sokka wasn't sure what was going on with his father and his grandparents; it appeared that cactus juice had different effects on them, because they were laughing loudly at each other, but it didn't appear as if anything else was wrong. Momo, on the other hand, probably was the exact opposite. The cactus juice must have had the same effect on him that it'd had on Sokka because he was sitting on Pakku's head and trying to groom him as if he were Appa. When he grew tired of that, he descended on Aang and began licking him.

"Well," Suki said, glaring at Sokka. "What are we supposed to do now?"

"Um…"

"I think Sokka's done enough," Katara said, amid all the laughing. "I'll figure something out."

"I think we may just have to wait for the effects to wear off," Aang replied, prying Momo off his head. The lemur gave a screech and scurried over to Katara, latching himself onto her arm and tugging at her hair.

"Momo, stop!"

But the little lemur continued on as if he hadn't heard the waterbender at all.

Katara struggled to pull him off, while Hakoda laughed.

"Do you remember that time when Sokka and Katara almost…?"

"Dad!" The Water Tribe siblings cried in unison. "Stop!"

"You promised you'd never tell that story," Sokka said, while Kanna chuckled.

"We don't want a repeat of what happened the last time," Katara said, hastily.

"What happened last time?" Aang wondered.

Suki grinned. "I've got to hear this."

"You don't," Katara said, hastily. "Trust us on this one."

"How bad could it be?"

"Let's just say it ranks high on our list of embarrassing moments," Sokka replied, as Katara steered Kanna to her room. Behind them, Hakoda and Pakku were roaring with laughter and Katara had to forcibly push them into their rooms.

"Sokka, if you ever get cactus juice again…" she threatened.

The lanky warrior grumbled inaudibly under his breath.

"I'm sure this will all blow over soon," Aang said, trying to alleviate the tension between the siblings. "Let's just make sure no else gets that bottle."

"Easier said than done," Suki said, watching Momo fly in circles over the remnants of the dinner. He alighted on an empty plate and chattered noisily to himself. Suki made a move for the half empty bottle, but before she could snatch it up, Momo had taken hold of it and was flying in circles around the house.

"Momo, you put that down right now," Sokka cried, trying to grab Momo.

"Brilliant idea, Sokka," Katara remarked, dryly. "Just keep yelling at him until he drops it."

"Do you have any better ideas?" Sokka demanded, glaring at her.

"This is your fault," Katara shot back.

"Forget about whose fault it is," Suki said. "Someone just catch Momo."

Despite being quite agile and quick, no one was able to catch Momo. A fifteen minute chase resulted in a broken table, soiled floors and a burnt rug that had somehow ended up in the hearth. Momo trilled from above them and Sokka frowned.

"He's mocking us, isn't he?" He said, glaring at the lemur. Suki dove for his tail but landed gracelessly in a heap on the floor. Screeching, Momo made a beeline for the door and opened it, darting out into the cold night.

"That lemur is too smart for his own good," Sokka said, pulling on his boots and following his sister and friends out into the night.

Outside, it was chilly as usual. All was silent save for the sound of the ocean waves pounding against the shore and a few pelts flapping in the icy breeze. Overhead, the stars twinkled and a crescent moon smiled down upon them. Momo was nowhere in sight, but he had left a clear trail to follow. It was by no means a straight trail and the four of them wandered around the village for nearly a half hour before the trail led them to a small tavern by the docks. Inside, several men and a few Earth Kingdom merchants were laughing together at something one of the merchants had said. Sokka peered in through the window and glanced around, spying Momo hanging from the rafters by his tail. The bottle he had taken off with was being passed around and each man took a swig before handing it off to the person sitting to his right. Sokka sighed and turned to face Aang, Katara, and Suki.

"How are we supposed to get it now?" Sokka demanded. "Do we just march right in and demand to have the bottle back?"

"It's no good now," Suki responded, watching all the commotion inside. "They've already emptied most of the bottle. Let's just get Momo and get out of here."

"And how do we get him?" Katara demanded. "We can't just waltz in there without everyone seeing us and expect to grab him."

"Why should we be stealthy about it?" Sokka asked. "I mean, what could possibly happen if they see us?"

His question was answered some time later, when he found himself pinned to a wall in the tavern after he claimed nothing would happen if they were seen and had simply walked in. In the center of the large room, a space and been cleared and a young Earth Kingdom merchant was trying to dance with Katara, who remained steadfast in her refusal. Beside her, an oddly familiar man was watching the whole scene while cradling three cabbages in his hand.

"What could possibly happen if they see us?" Suki wondered, throwing Sokka's words back at him.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Sokka said, waving a hand dismissively. "Would you mind just getting me down from here?"

Suki did as she was requested and wordlessly helped the warrior down. Behind them, a muscular earthbender laughed.

"She's good," he said, pointing to Suki. "My girlfriend at home can't do nothing like that."

"That's nice," Sokka muttered, not bothering to comment on the earthbender's incorrect grammar.

"So," he wondered, sauntering up to the pair. "Do I hear wedding bells ringing?"

Sokka and Suki blushed and gave stammered explanations and the earthbender just laughed, thumping Sokka on the back and sending him sprawling into another man who splattered the remnants of his meal on his nearby companions. Enraged, one stood up and grabbing his plate, which consisted of stewed sea prunes among other things, and hurled it blindly.

"Food fight," he cried, and the rest of the tavern followed his example leaving Sokka to just gape.

"I promise I will never touch cactus juice again as long as I live," Sokka swore, watching the commotion unfurl around them. Aang flinched as a rather burly man was thrown against a table and food was sent flying. In the center of the room, Katara was using a water whip to deflect all the food being thrown around her and to keep a rather persistent man away. From behind her, the man with the cabbages darted over to where the trio stood and ducked behind them.

"I thought this place would be better than the Earth Kingdom," he wailed, ducking as something splattered on the wall behind him. "How am I going to sell my cabbages in a place like this?"

"This is the South Pole," Sokka pointed out, recognizing the small man as the cabbage merchant with unfortunate luck. "You can't grow cabbages here."

"I know that," he replied, clinging to his three cabbages. "I'm just here to sell them. I've got a whole lot on the ship I came on. I figured the South Pole would be the perfect place to sell them, until this happened."

"Yeah, well…"

He was cut off by the airbender calling his sister's name and turned just in time to see Katara tackled to the floor. A young merchant, perhaps in his twenties was shielding her and crying loudly for all to hear.

"I'll save you from the evil pirates," he said, throwing her over his shoulder and staggering to the door.

"Put me down!" She protested, attempting to free herself.

"'S alright, little lady. I'll protect you."

"I don't need any protection," Katara protested, delivering a small water whip to his head which did nothing to faze him. "Will you please put me down?"

Without warning, the man dropped her and she landed on a heap on the floor, scowling up at him.

"What was that for?" She demanded, watching him run about the tavern in search of something. He grabbed a flask and rushed back to her side and dumped it on her just as she had brushed herself off. The waterbender gasped as the cold water drenched her, but easily bent it out of her clothes and hurled it aside.

"Who set the little lady on fire?" the merchant asked, grinning stupidly.

Aang quickly rushed to her side and airbent her dry, pulling her away from all the commotion to where Sokka and Suki stood on the side.

"I think I know how to get Momo," Aang said. "But we're probably going to have to take care of all these guys too. At this rate, they'll destroy the tavern and I don't think the owner would be too happy."

"And how are we going to do that?" Sokka demanded, watching Momo swing from the rafters by his tail.

"You guys take care of them. I'll get Momo."

Without waiting for a reply, Aang had airbent himself up to the rafters that supported the roof. Momo was dangling from one near the center, catching tidbits of food as they flew his way. He was so focused on the food, he didn't notice the airbender's presence until Aang had caught him. From below, Katara, Sokka, and Suki cheered but their cries of delight were heard and an elderly man, who'd probably had a little too much of the potent drink, spotted Aang on the rafters and with an odd cry akin to that of a battle cry, tried to climb up the rafters to get "the evil pirate king." For some time, the airbender was stranded on top of the rafters, nimbly dodging anything and everything throw at him, but suddenly Sokka suddenly came to his rescue.

"Look," the warrior cried, pointing out the window to the merchant vessel docked nearby. "It's the pirate ship."

Suki and Katara exchanged glances and groaned but, much to their surprise, the crowd of men made a beeline for the door, whizzing past the trio and allowing the airbender to come down.

Sokka laughed, watching the men take off towards their own ship.

"First rule of cactus juice: nothing is what it seems."

"He knows from experience," Katara said to Suki, wryly. The Kyoshi warrior laughed.

"Hey, it worked, didn't it?" Sokka demanded.

"I'm not sure if I should ask how or why," Suki said. "But it did."

"Cactus juice does weird things," Sokka said, leading them out of the tavern, now littered with drinks and food and damaged almost beyond repair. "I've learned something very important tonight."

"I hope it's never to touch it again," Suki muttered to Katara.

"I learned," Sokka said, grinning. "That cactus juice affects everyone differently."

Katara groaned. "And you learned nothing else?"

"I'm not keeping a secret stash ever again, if that's what you're wondering," Sokka retorted. "And besides, you've got to admit, I fixed this up pretty nicely."

Aang simply shook his head, but he was smiling. "This has got to be, by far, the weirdest thing that has ever happened to us. I'm still trying to make sense of it."

"Me too," Katara agreed, listening to the shouts of the merchants as she followed her friends back home.

Aang glanced at the docks and sighed. "They do know they're setting their ship on fire, right?"

"They think it's a pirate ship," Sokka reminded him. "By the time they realize that I fooled them, they'll have forgotten most of it and the effect will have worn off."

"I hope we can say the same for Dad, Gran, and Pakku," Katara said.

"We may not need to," Sokka said, opening the front door and letting himself and the others in. "We could just…" He trailed off, noticing the floors of the house were covered in water and groaned.

"I don't know about you guys," Aang said, surveying the state of the house. "But I'm going to go sleep on Appa."

"Wait for me," Katara cried, rushing to follow the airbender out to the makeshift stable for Appa. Reluctantly, Sokka followed them vowing never to touch cactus juice ever again.

"How are we going to explain this?" Suki demanded, following Sokka out.

"If we're lucky, maybe we won't need to," Aang said, watching the intoxicated men dance around their burning ship. "Maybe this whole thing will just blow over."

"Hopefully," Katara said, following his gaze. The orange glow brightened as the whole ship became encased in flames and the rowdy men cheered louder. But their excitement was short-lived, for in a matter of minutes, a loud explosion reverberated across the silence and the men were left seeking shelter from raining debris from the ship. For a minute, all was silent and then, as something green rained down along with the debris, an all too familiar echo broke the silence.

"_Not my cabbages._"

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_Thanks for reading; I hope it wasn't too terrible. _^^' _And as always, thank you so much to everyone who reviewed/favorited and supported this story. You guys are simply wonderful! _^-^

_~Cassidy Alice_


	96. The Aftermath

_A/N: I finally got around to posting this chapter which, like many others in this collection, is long overdue. ^^' I wass busy working on another project which sort of took precedence over this collection, but now that it's done, I had time to finish this. Anyways all credit for this chapter goes to YenShenMoon and 1911cowboy on KF who requested a oneshot on the aftermath of Aang's encounter with Yakone. I don't know if I did the topic much (or any) justice, but I'm hoping this is decent. Happy readings! :)_

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything._

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**XCVI. The Aftermath**

_"Fear cannot take what you do not give it."_

~Christopher Coan

Aang wasn't looking forward to going home. It wasn't that he disliked his home, because he didn't. But, he had no desire to explain what had just happened to his wife and with good reason too. Katara wouldn't take the news well and understandably so. It was never an easy subject to broach and the news would make her worried. A worried Katara was the last thing he wanted. In any case, he wasn't really sure how to approach the topic. He couldn't walk in and casually explain he had nearly been bloodbent to death and hope Katara wouldn't start worrying, but he couldn't keep the truth from her either. Toph, who stood beside him as he waited for the ferry at the docks, sensed his discomfort and sighed.

"You know you're going to have to tell Katara, right?"

Aang sighed. "I know, but I don't really want to worry her."

Sokka, who stood beside them, barked a laugh. "Good luck with that. Katara will stop incessantly worrying the day I firebend."

Aang sighed, glancing at the waters of Yue Bay that stretched out before them. The evening sunlight danced on the rippling waters of the bay and outlined the contours of Air Temple Island in the distance. A little ways out, a ferry from the Island was slowly approaching them and Aang suddenly felt uneasy, which was rather odd considering how he'd cheated death yet again just a few hours ago. Oddly enough, he found the thought of breaking the news to Katara to be more nerve-wracking than actually being bloodbent. Sighing, and passing a hand over his face, Aang boarded the vessel followed by Toph and Sokka and kept his gaze trained on the waters for the duration of the trip. When they docked at the island, Sokka gave the airbender a reassuring smile.

"I'm sure everything will go smoothly, Aang. Just tell Katara whenever you're ready."

"Besides, what's the big deal?" Toph drawled. "You're alive, aren't you, old man?"

Aang scowled but then brightened. "If I'm old, so are you," he responded, cheekily.

"But I can still take you in a fight, baldy, and don't you forget it," Toph responded. Sokka snickered. "But what I'm trying to say is: Yakone didn't get you, and that's what matters."

"Honestly, I don't see what the big deal about telling Katara is. She'll be all worried and get emotional, then you'll talk some sense into her, and then you two will hug and be mushy for a long time."

"And on that note, I'm going to go find Lin. Have fun, Twinkle Toes," Toph called, waving as she set off to find her daughter who had spent the day on the Island.

"Cheer up," Sokka said, ascending the steps to the house. "Things will be fine."

"I hope so," the airbender muttered, sighing as they entered the house.

"We're back," Sokka shouted, grinning as the aroma of freshly cooked food wafted from the kitchen. Katara's answer was drowned out by the sound of shouting and the sudden patter of footsteps. Somewhere in the house, something crashed causing Aang and Sokka to flinch and Aang groaned as more shouts echoed.

"It must be Kya and Bumi. I'll see what they're up to," he said, hurrying off towards the source of all the noise. Sokka nodded and joined his sister in the kitchen, where she was slicing some vegetables. Several other dishes were cooking and a loaf of bread was baking. Sokka took everything in and shook his head, smiling.

"Are you planning on feeding an army with all this food?"

Katara grinned back at him. "If it's a two man army, then yes. Between you and Bumi, sometimes I never know if we have enough food."

Sokka chuckled.

"Did Toph come with you?" Katara wondered, rapidly adding the vegetables she had sliced to another dish and slicing more.

"She went to find Lin," he replied, wondering what was taking the blind earthbender so long. "And Aang went to stop whatever Kya and Bumi were doing."

Katara momentarily glanced at him before going back to her cutting.

"You look tired. Long day?"

"Yeah," Sokka replied, leaning against a counter. "There were a couple of meetings and I was so busy I missed lunch, I almost got run over by a reckless driver in a satomobile, got bloodbent by Yakone during his trial, before he managed to take out the whole room and escape and…"

Katara nearly sliced her finger at the last bit.

"You were bloodbent? Are you alright?"

Sokka nodded. "Better off than Toph and Aang, and the…"

This time, Katara did slice her finger.

"Aang?" She whispered. "He…?" She blanched.

"Uh…no," Sokka said, hastily. "See, he was…I mean, he tried…he's fine Katara."

But the waterbender didn't seem to hear him as she threw down the knife and ran off in search of her husband. Behind her, Sokka was shouting for her to come back, but Katara just hurried on, paying no attention to Sokka's cries or the shouts of her children who were suddenly wondering what all the commotion was about.

She found Aang in their chamber, attempting to fix a broken vase that had probably been smashed when Kya and Bumi were playing. When he saw her, he stood up to greet her, but barely managed a hello before Katara had thrown her arms around him in a tight embrace and buried her face in the fabric of his robes.

"You're okay," she exclaimed, sighing in relief. "Thank goodness."

Aang wrapped his arms around her and chuckled. "Why wouldn't I be?"

He felt Katara shiver a bit and when she pulled away, her eyes were glazed over with tears.

"Sokka told me about what happened," she said softly, wiping away a few tears that managed to spill. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I was going to," the airbender explained. "I was just trying to figure out how."

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," he said.

"Are you sure?" Katara demanded.

He nodded. "Really, Katara. I'm fine. You'd know if I wasn't; I've never been able to lie to you."

"So…how did the trial go?"

Aang sighed. "Honestly, it didn't go so well."

Katara regarded him with a curious expression. "What do you mean?" She demanded.

"The witnesses were right: Yakone is a bloodbender. But…"

"But?" Katara prodded.

"He can bloodbend without the full moon. That's how he's been able to get away with everything for so long."

"But that's not possible," Katara gasped. "Is it?"

"It's possible," Aang replied, grimly. "Just ask Sokka and Toph. He bloodbent the entire room to escape."

"Even you?"

Aang nodded. "Like I said, he managed to bloodbend the entire room."

"He didn't…kill anyone, did he?" the waterbender asked, fearfully.

"No," her husband replied. "He didn't but he nearly succeeded with me."

Katara inhaled sharply. "_What? _Sokka neglected to mention that."

"It's okay," Aang said, giving her a reassuring smile. "I'm fine now."

"But, Aang, he tried to _kill _you."

"I know, but he didn't and that's all that matters."

"But he could try it again or he could do the same to others."

"He's in prison now, Katara, and he can't…"

"He could break out," she responded. "He wouldn't be the first. And he could come after you again."

"He won't because…"

"And what about the kids?" Katara demanded, cutting him off. She was pacing now and Aang sighed. "What if he goes after them to get at you?"

"He won't," Aang repeated, attempting to explain again. "He has to escape prison first and even if he does come after us, I think the kids will be safe enough."

"I'll make sure they are," Katara said resolutely, her eyes flashing with anger and determination. "If Yakone thinks he can escape and get back at us, he's got another thing coming. I'll do whatever it takes to keep our family safe, even if it means learning to bloodbend without the full moon."

Aang's eyes widened at the last part. "What? Why?"

Katara glanced at him. "Are you really asking that?"

"But…it's illegal," Aang reminded her. "You worked so hard to make it illegal. Why would you want to learn it?"

"It'd be foolish to think Yakone doesn't have any followers, or that he hasn't passed the art down to someone. There are probably bloodbenders still out there. I don't want to learn it at all," she replied, looking down. "But if I have to, I will."

"But…"

Katara sighed. "I hate bloodbending and I hate being a bloodbender, but I'll use it if I have to and…"

She was interrupted by Aang who held up his hand to stop her. Moving swiftly and silently, he approached the closed door of their room and opened it to reveal the shocked faces of their children and Lin. For a second, Katara just stared at them but, with a sinking feeling, suddenly realized that they had probably heard the conversation she and Aang had been having, including the part about her being a bloodbender. Eyes widening with shock, she slowly sank down on the bed, wishing she'd been more mindful about discussing bloodbending with her children in the house. She'd been waiting for the opportune moment to explain it to them, but this wasn't how she had envisioned breaking the truth to them.

"How long have you kids been standing out here?" Aang wondered.

"A while," Bumi admitted, glancing down at his feet, Behind him, Tenzin was glancing nervously at the floor and Lin seemed a little lost, as if she wasn't quite sure what she was doing with the three siblings.

"And how much of our conversation did you hear?"

"Enough," Kya admitted.

An uneasy silence lingered in the room for a minute or so, before Kya threw her arms around her father.

"I'm glad you're okay," she said, smiling up at him. "We were all really worried."

Bumi and Tenzin nodded vigorously as if to accentuate her point and Aang just smiled.

"That Yakone guy isn't going to come after us, is he?" Bumi asked.

Aang laughed. "It'd be a little difficult, seeing as how he's in prison."

"But he's a bloodbender," Tenzin said. "Wouldn't that make it easier for him to get out?"

Aang shook his head. "I've been trying to tell your mother this the whole time. He can't bend anymore, so if he wants to break out, he'll have to rely on something other than his bending."

"So, he can't bloodbend anymore, can he?" Kya said.

"No," her father replied. "He can't."

The room descended into a silence again for a few seconds, before Lin quietly announced she would go find her mother and disappeared from the room. For a second, the three siblings watched the young earthbender leave before Kya turned to face her mother who was staring out the window.

"Mom?"

Katara turned to face her daughter almost reluctantly, fearing the imminent conversation ahead.

Kya took a seat beside her mother and glanced down at her hands. "Why didn't you ever tell us?"

"Tell you what?" Katara wondered, feigning ignorance.

"Mom…"

Katara sighed. "I was going to, eventually. I was never going to keep it a secret from you."

"Then why didn't you tell us already?" Bumi wondered, hopping onto the bed beside his sister and his mother as Tenzin joined them.

"I was going to wait until you were older," Katara admitted. "It's not a pleasant topic to discuss."

"So," Kya wondered, idly fiddling with a strand of her hair. "Are you going to teach it to me?"

Katara's shocked look suddenly made Kya wish she'd kept her mouth shut.

"I refuse to teach it to you or anyone else," the waterbender said, sternly. "But, I can tell you about it so you know what to expect if you ever encounter a bloodbender. If you really want to learn it, you may do so when you're old enough to handle it."

"How bad could it be?" Kya wondered, glancing up at her mother.

"I was forced to learn it," Katara said. Kya caught the rueful tone in her mother's voice and fidgeted beside her. "If I hadn't, your uncle probably would've unintentionally killed your father. But being bloodbent and being able to bloodbend gives you a horrible feeling. I should know since I've been bloodbent and used it myself."

"You have?" Tenzin asked, in awe.

Katara nodded. "Using it is not something I'm proud of, but I have used it twice: once because I had to and again for selfish reasons."

"Like what?" Tenzin wondered.

"I used it when I went after the man who killed my mother," Katara admitted. "I'm not proud of it, but at the time, I was so blinded by anger and hatred, I don't think I saw just what I was using it for."

Beside her, Bumi gave a sudden exclamation. "Mom, bloodbending lets you control people, right?"

Katara nodded. "More or less."

"Then how come you never use it to make us do our chores and stuff? I mean, wouldn't it be easier than yelling at us all the time?"

Aang, who had taken a seat behind them on the bed, couldn't help laughing at that and despite the question and her distaste for bloodbending, Katara joined in.

"It probably would, but I don't want you kids to experience it. Besides, I pushed so hard to make it illegal because it's just so unpleasant. You have no idea how easy it is to seriously injure or kill someone with bloodbending. If you're lucky, you'll never have to encounter it at all."

Kya remained thoughtful for a minute before speaking. "Did you keep this a secret because you were afraid of our reactions?"

Katara blinked. Sometimes, it surprised her how well her children could guess her thoughts.

"Honestly, I was worried you kids would fear me. The first few days after I learned it, I was scared of myself."

Without warning, the young waterbender threw her arms around her mother in a hug.

"I don't think we'd be able to be afraid of you like that," Kya said. "You're the best mom ever."

"As I've been trying to tell her forever," Aang chimed in.

"You know," Kya said, pensively. "I'd feel sorry for Yakone's children, if he ever had any. I don't think they'd be as lucky as we are."

Katara and Aang looked at their daughter inquiringly.

"Yeah," Bumi said. "We have the best parents ever."

Katara laughed. "That's very sweet, Bumi, but you're still doing your chores."

Bumi pretended to sulk, but then glanced at his mother with a wide grin on his face. "I know. But I just wanted to let you and Dad know. I know we don't say it very often, but you guys are the best parents ever."

Katara smiled. "Thank you. Why don't you kids go set the table for dinner? Your uncle is probably growing impatient."

"Can I invite Lin to stay over for dinner?" Tenzin asked.

"I don't think Toph is going anywhere," Aang chuckled. "So I don't think you really need to invite Lin, but you can if you'd like."

Tenzin scurried out of the room, his older siblings in tow and Aang and Katara watched them leave before Katara turned to face her husband.

"I'm sorry for overreacting," she apologized. "And for worrying so much, but when you said Yakone tried to kill you, I…"

"It's okay," the airbender replied, giving her a small smile and handing her a bandage for her finger she had long since forgotten to tend to. "I was trying to figure out the gentlest way to break it to you, but I suppose there really isn't much of one."

"Either way, I probably overreacted. I'm sorry. But I get so worried when things like that happen to you. I don't want to lose you."

"You won't," he promised, closing the distance between them and kissing her gently. "You didn't lose me after Azula hurt me or after the battle with Ozai and you won't lose me now."

"You can't keep that promise," Katara responded, smiling sadly.

"No," Aang agreed. "But I can try to."

Katara just wrapped her arms around him and buried her face in the fabric of his robes.

"For the record, I meant what I said; I'd learn how to bloodbend without the full moon, if it means keeping you and the children safe."

"I don't doubt you would," Aang said, smiling down at her. "But thankfully, I don't think you'll need to."

"I'm glad you're okay," she said, tightening her hold on him.

"Well, it'll take more than a crazy bloodbender to get rid of me."

Katara laughed and leaned up to kiss him, grateful that it was so.

* * *

_Thank you to everyone who read and reviewed. And as always, thank you all so much for all the support! It really means a lot! ^-^_

_~Cassidy Alice_


	97. Rituals

_A/N: So, I finally got around to posting this chapter which is long overdue, as are most of the requests, but I was occupied with the anthology project on the KF forum, which took a long time to complete. Now that my contribution to it has been finished and uploaded, I'll have a lot more time to focus on fanfiction again. ^^ Anyway, all credit for this chapter goes to Cat-Stat-Ave who sent me a detailed request which I can only hope I did justice to. Thanks for the request and hope this is alright. Enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything._

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**XCVII. Rituals**

_"Chains do not hold a marriage together. It is threads, hundreds of tiny threads which sew people together through the years." _

~Simone Signoret

Katara was nervous. It wasn't Aang so much as what she was going to do with him that made her feel that way. It seemed silly to think that a post-wedding ritual would make her more nervous than the actual wedding itself, but there were butterflies in her stomach that hadn't been there upon the end of their wedding ceremony a few hours prior. Honestly, Katara couldn't even remember how or when they'd agreed upon performing the ritual. Sokka had been given an old scroll by some anonymous benefactor, but the Water Tribe warrior had passed it off to Aang the minute he'd discovered it was all about an old Air Nomad tradition. Naturally, Aang hadn't heard anything about it as he'd never been to a traditional Air Nomad wedding, but he had heard of a few of the rituals performed and as this particular one had vaguely recalled itself to his memory, Katara had suggested incorporating it into their wedding somehow. After all, their wedding had combined rites from both their cultures so there was no reason a simple ritual couldn't be added. But neither of them had actually consented to it or spoken about it; somehow, they had come to a mutual agreement they would perform the ritual and thus, the second hour after their wedding found the two kneeling in front of each other, feeling somewhat awkward as they began the ceremony.

It was a fairly simple and straightforward ritual in which the bride and groom anointed each other with scented oils symbolic of the love they had for their parents or guardians being transferred to their spouse. Customarily, the groom anointed the bride with vanilla oil to symbolize the love he had for his mother transferred to his wife, and the bride would anoint the groom with oil scented of sandalwood to represent the love she had for her father transferred to her husband. Despite the simplicity of the ritual, Katara felt as if she would mess up. She couldn't explain why she was so nervous now when she'd been so calm during their wedding. She hadn't felt any of the pre-wedding jitters until now, though at this point, they could hardly be called _pre_-wedding jitters.

Admittedly, the tension didn't last long. Aang's nervousness also helped and after five minutes of awkward silence in which they had solemnly and silently performed the ritual, they were talking and laughing as if such a thing hadn't caused them any anxiety at all.

"It's funny," Aang remarked, inhaling the scents of vanilla and sandalwood in the air. "The scent smells so familiar and yet I know I've never used scented oils for anything before."

Katara blushed slightly and fidgeted a bit as she nervously played with the hem of her robe.

"Actually, you probably don't remember this," she said. "But after Azula hurt you in Ba Sing Se, the Earth King came with us. Before we left the city, he managed to get a hold of some supplies. It wasn't much; just a change of clothes, a little bit of bread, and a single bar of herbal soap. No one touched the soap, except for me. On the Fire Navy ship we captured, I used it on you and it was scented with vanilla and sandalwood."

Aang looked thoughtful for a minute and frowned. "I don't remember it, but then again, I don't remember much from the time Azula shot me to the time I woke up."

Katara nodded understandingly and the two fell into a comfortable silence punctuated only by the breeze from the open windows rustling the curtains.

"Can I ask you something?" Katara questioned suddenly, scooting a little closer.

Aang laughed and nodded. "Since when have you need permission to ask _me_ anything?"

"Point taken," the waterbender laughed. "But I was just wondering: when we were on the Fire Navy ship, sometimes you'd talk in your sleep. Most of it, I couldn't understand, but you mentioned Gyatso's name and one other name."

"I did?" The airbender asked, mildly surprised. He didn't remember much from that time, but whatever memories he had were mainly of the beautiful, young waterbender. He hadn't been lucid very often (semi-conscious at best) and trying to make sense of anything then had been as hard as trying to remember everything that had taken place in the short time, now. All he could remember was the sharp pain and a few instances where he had been conscious enough to faintly hear and see Katara.

"I honestly don't remember much of it," he admitted.

"I didn't think you would," the waterbender replied, with a small smile.

"What was the other name?" the airbender wondered.

Katara looked pensive for a minute. "Iio, I think. Is that right?"

Aang nodded, a small smile playing on his lips. "She was a nun at the Eastern Air Temple. She helped some of us choose our sky bison. What about her?"

"Well…nothing," Katara said, fiddling with her hem again. "It's just that whenever I used that soap to clean your wounds, you'd say their names more often than not. So, I just got curious, that's all. It didn't happen very often, just whenever I used the herbal soap to clean your wounds."

Aang thought for a moment before replying. "In the Air Temples, I know the monks often used sandalwood scented soap and the nuns used vanilla scented ones. They were supposed to have healing properties and stuff, so we were almost always surrounded by the scents. I suppose that's why."

"You haven't told me much about Iio. What was she like?" Katara wanted to know.

Aang smiled. "I didn't know her for very long, but she was always cheerful. The first time I met her was the first time I went to the Eastern Air Temple. She helped me and a few other airbenders choose a sky bison. I guess she was the closest thing to a mother I ever had."

"Oh."

Katara's hand absently went to her mother's necklace, a gesture that was not lost on the airbender.

"I wish she could have been here," Katara said, gazing down at the floor. "You two would've gotten along well together."

Aang offered her a smile and laced his hands with her. "I'm sure I would've loved her."

The waterbender smiled. "Me too. She got along well with everyone; I can't remember anyone who didn't like her." She sighed. "Don't you ever miss your parents?"

"I never knew them," the airbender reminded her and Katara gave a sheepish laugh and stammered out an apology. "But, I have thought about them, sometimes."

"You never met them?" Katara wondered. She had known Aang for a few years now and it amazed it in all that time that he never once mentioned anything about his parents or expressed any desire to find out about them.

"I didn't," He admitted, shaking his head. "But, I don't think the monks had plans of keeping them away from me forever, either. I always assumed I'd meet them once my Avatar training had finished, but then I ran away, so I guess I'll never know."

"Oh."

Again, they fell into a comfortable silence and watched the twilight fade into night.

"My mom and I would joke about this when we were little," Katara said. Her lips were turned up in a smile and her eyes had a faraway note. "I would always say I was going to marry a waterbender and she would laugh and say she'd sing at my wedding and then cry when it was over. And, she'd say there was a special mother-daughter ritual we'd perform too. I don't know if it was actually tradition or just something she made up, but I've always wondered."

Aang just smiled softly at her and Katara laughed.

"I'm being sentimental and getting lost in my memories. Sorry."

"You don't need to apologize. I'm sure I would too, if I had any memories." He gave a sad smile, but the wistful look that flitted across his face didn't escape Katara's attention."

"This ritual just made me think of my mom. I honestly can't say why," she explained. "I guess it was just the symbolism of it; transferring a parent's love and all. But, for what it's worth, I meant what I said. I really do think my mom would have loved you."

Aang smiled. "I'm glad. I didn't know my parents at all, but I'm sure they would have loved you too; it's awfully hard not to."

Katara laughed. "For you maybe; you married me after all. But I can think of lots of girls who probably hate me right now and are cursing my existence. They probably think I stole you from them."

Aang laughed. "It can't be theft if I willingly allowed you to 'steal me.' Besides, I don't think steal is the right word considering _I _asked _you_ to marry me."

Katara beamed. "You know," she began, thoughtfully. "I used to hate rituals, no matter what kind they were. When I was little my dad would sometimes make me and Sokka watch the stars with him whenever he went with my mom. I used to hate it back then and I grumbled and complained nearly all the time. It wasn't until recently I've come to appreciate some of the simplest ones."

"I know what you mean," the airbender agreed. "The monks would have so many and sometimes, I'd hate doing them. But they always told us they were there to guide us and help us, to reinforce all sorts of valuable lessons and stuff." He laughed and continued. "I just passed it off as an old saying but I guess it's true."

Instead of continuing their discussion, Katara gave a sudden laugh threw her arms around Aang.

"We're married," she exclaimed, gleefully. "I was so nervous about this ritual, I'd almost forgotten to be excited."

Aang chuckled and wrapped his arms around her. "Me too. I feel like the whole ceremony went by in a daze. I feel like this has to be a dream."

Katara nodded in agreement. "I feel like a little girl, giddy and excited. We get to spend the rest of our lives together."

"Forever," he corrected, planting a kiss on her forehead.

Katara nestled into him and released a peaceful sigh. "That sounds perfect."

And above them, the stars seemed to glow brighter.

* * *

_Thanks for reading and, as always, thanks for all the reviews so far! You're all wonderful! :)_

_~Cassidy Alice_

_P.S. I'm not usually in the habit of doing promoting my own stuff because it always makes me feel terribly guilty, but if anyone is interested in learning more about the anthology project over on KF, I have an explanation (probably a rather bad one ^^') in my fic posted on this site and it's always available on KF to read. There's no obligation to read mine (although if anyone would like to, it'd be very much appreciated :D) but it consists of several talented authors and the cover for the anthology was done by a wonderfully talented artist (and friend) so, at the very least, I recommend checking their stories out. It was such fun working on the project and everyone put in a lot of effort, so I'm sure it would mean a great deal to everyone involved if this project was a success. ^-^_

_And on a completely unrelated note, I do have a couple more requests I'm working on, so I'll try to have them up ASAP! :)_


	98. Smile

_A/N: It's a miracle! Cassidy's updating! XD I'm really sorry for such long gaps between chapters but I've been swamped with work lately, so I haven't had much time to write. I've been so busy it took me forever and a day to get this request out. All credit for this chapter goes to Caroline-chan5, who sent me this request ages ago. As usual, I've taken forever to get it up (sorry for the ridiculously long wait), but I hope it's decent. Enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything._

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**XCVIII. Smile**

_And that's why I smile  
It's been a while  
Since every day and everything has felt this right  
And now you turn it all around  
And suddenly you're all I need  
The reason why I smile_

Avril Lavigne, Smile

Katara was avoiding him. Of that much, Aang was certain. It wasn't as if he had done something to anger her; in fact, he hadn't done much of anything at all. So, he had a hard time figuring out just why the waterbender was avoiding him after kissing him so passionately just a few hours earlier. Aang still had difficulty wrapping his mind around the thought that _Katara_ had been the one to kiss him as they stood on the balcony of the Jasmine Dragon that evening, silhouetted by a dazzling sunset. He'd often imagined Katara somehow returning his feelings, but the kiss they had shared had been infinitely better than anything he could have fantasized about. Still, he couldn't figure out why she was avoiding him. Perhaps, it was the kiss. The last two times he'd kissed her, she'd avoided him for a while and it had taken a conscious effort on both their parts to speak again. But, _she_ had kissed him this time, so he wasn't so sure if that theory was applicable. There was also the possibility, that she had realized too late what she was doing. Perhaps, she'd been caught up in the mood and kissed him, only to realize afterwards she didn't quite mean to. But Aang knew he hadn't imagined the passion behind the kiss, the way her lips moved against his, almost pleading with him to understand. There was no imagining the way she'd hugged him or wrapped her arms around him as they kissed and no imagining the blush that graced her features when they pulled away. So, that theory didn't quite fit either. Beyond that, he couldn't guess why the waterbender was avoiding him.

Sighing to himself, Aang shifted his position on the steps to the tea shop and glanced up at the night sky littered with stars. As glorious and wonderful as that kiss had been, it put them in an awkward position. Were they a couple or was it wrong to assume that at this point? Did he have to ask Katara formally to be his girlfriend or had that been the whole point of the kiss? Or was it too soon to think about any of that yet? Unconsciously sighing to himself again, the airbender turned to look at Momo, who was perched on the railing beside him.

"What do you think, Momo?" he asked. The lemur just cocked his head to the side and blinked. Aang laughed. "I should've known better than to ask you for advice."

A soft laugh echoed behind him and Aang turned to find Katara poking her head out the door.

"You won't get much advice from a lemur," she said, coming to sit beside him.

The airbender smiled. "I guess not."

The two lapsed into a comfortable silence punctuated only by the sound of trickling water from the nearby fountain. It was a few minutes before Katara spoke.

"Nice night, isn't it?" she wondered, twirling a strand of her hair around her fingers. Aang nodded, but didn't say anything. "It was really nice of Iroh to let us stay here for some time."

"Yeah, it was," the airbender agreed, smiling at her. "What brings you out here?"

"Couldn't sleep," Katara replied. "I guess I just have a lot on my mind."

"Like what?" Aang wondered.

The question caught Katara off guard. She didn't have an answer for him that didn't involve her revealing everything she'd been thinking about. So she settled for something simple.

"Stuff," she said, lamely.

Aang chuckled. "That's pretty deep."

Katara smiled softly and gazed at her feet. "Truth is, I was thinking about you…about us."

The airbender managed a weak "oh" before following her lead and gazing down.

"What…what about us?"

"I guess I was just wondering: what…what exactly are we?" Katara wanted to know. "I mean, we...kissed, so does it mean…?"

"What?" he prodded, gently.

Katara flushed and fiddled with a strand of her hair. She wouldn't meet his gaze. "Are we a couple?"

"I don't know," he replied, slowly. "Do you want to be?"

"Only if you want to be," she replied, blushing.

"I don't mind," he said, shyly.

Katara gave him a small smile, but Aang could sense something was wrong. When he asked her about it, the waterbender gave a sigh and ran a hand through her hair.

"It's just…I don't know how to be your girlfriend," she admitted, blushing profusely. "I mean, I have a hard time believing I even had the courage to kiss you."

"Do you regret it?" Aang asked.

Katara could detect the tiniest of wavers in his voice and her eyes widened. She wondered what had given him that idea and realized, only seconds later, that she'd been avoiding him and probably giving him the wrong impression. She opened her mouth to explain, but a sudden idea struck her and with a confidence she didn't know she possessed, grabbed his collar and yanked him closer, pressing her lips against his. When she pulled away, the airbender looked slightly dazed and Katara had to suppress a laugh.

"Does that answer your question?"

Aang grinned and this time, Katara didn't bother to stifle her laugh.

"I never regretted it," She said, smiling at him and tucking a few strands of her hair behind her ears.

"Then why were you avoiding me?"

"I was just nervous. I didn't know where exactly things stood between us and I didn't want to complicate it more." Aang offered her a reassuring smile and Katara was aware of the sudden urge she had to kiss him again. Suppressing a groan, she continued on. "I'm still nervous."

"Why?" Aang asked.

She shrugged. "I've never been a relationship before. I don't know how to be your girlfriend…or anyone's for that matter."

"Well, I guess we're even then, because I don't either."

"Won't you mind the talking, though?" The waterbender wondered. "I mean, people are bound to talk once they find out you're dating a peasant."

Wordlessly, the airbender laced his fingers with her and smiled at her. "I don't listen to what they say anyway."

Katara smiled and turned her gaze back out to the cityscape. A cool breeze whistled through the eaves and unconsciously, Katara scooted a little closer to Aang, who remained blissfully unaware of her proximity. It wasn't until he felt a light weight on his shoulder some time later that he realized just how close they were. Katara had fallen asleep with a smile on her face and she seemed content. Her head was resting gently on his shoulder and the airbender smiled to himself, being careful not to wake her.

Aang hadn't intended to fall asleep, but the next thing he knew, he was waking up to the early morning sunrise. Rubbing the sleep from his eyes, he turned to look at Katara. The waterbender was still sleeping soundly and the airbender had no intention of waking her just yet, but she stirred suddenly and her eyes fluttered open. For a moment, it seemed as if she hadn't realized just where she was, but when she realized she had spent the night with Aang outside and she'd fallen asleep _on_ him, she blushed and hastily scooted away.

"I'm so sorry," she began, nervously fiddling with her hair. "I didn't mean to keep you out here all night, Aang."

The airbender grinned good-naturedly. "It's fine. I didn't mind. Besides, I'd have stayed out anyway. It was a nice night."

Katara just smiled. "So," She wondered, casting a sideways glance at the airbender. "What's on the agenda for today?"

Aang shrugged. "I don't know," he admitted. "I'm not used to having free time with nothing to do."

Katara laughed. "I guess none of us are."

The airbender nodded and suddenly smiled, turning to his girlfriend (how thrilling to be able to call her that!). "What do you want to do, Katara?"

"You're asking me?" She laughed. "I don't know. We could…go out and explore the city, I guess."

"So, like a date?" the airbender asked, blushing.

Katara flushed. "If you want it to be."

Aang shrugged, hoping she wouldn't notice how eager yet nervous he was about the prospect of a date. "I don't mind."

Katara grinned. "I guess it's a date then," she said, praying her voice didn't betray how nervous she felt. Aang smiled and helped her up and they slipped inside, mindful of the others who were still sleeping. Aang was in no mood to incur Toph's wrath at being woken up at the crack of dawn or face Sokka's barrage of questions should he spot them. Thankfully, no one noticed them slip into their rooms and the rest of the household, save for Iroh, was still fast asleep when they slipped out.

Outside, the city was bathed in rays of the warm golden sunshine and street vendors were eagerly beginning their day with a few early customers. The city seemed almost half asleep but within a half hour, the streets were full of carriages and people and the silence that had earlier pervaded the area had vanished altogether. Katara and Aang spent some time walking through the Upper Ring and gazing at all the large houses and elegant structures littered throughout the area before deciding to explore other parts of the city. Katara had expressed a desire to ride the trains again and so they had taken one with the intention of getting off at a random stop to simply walk around but the instant Aang had stepped on the train, he'd been surrounded by a horde of girls and Katara had to claw her way through them to rescue the poor airbender who was politely trying to decline any and all offers of going on a date with one of them. By the time they'd managed to get off the train and lose the horde of girls who seemed bent on following Aang around, the train had docked at the station in the Lower Ring and the two had hurriedly slipped off and disappeared among the crowd of denizens there.

The Lower Ring was much livelier than the Upper Ring had been and there was so much to see and do, Aang and Katara spent a good deal of time just drinking everything in. They spent the better part of the morning wandering around the Lower Ring and managed to find a secluded little restaurant to have lunch in. By mid-afternoon, they had explored a good deal of the Lower Ring, but neither of them seemed to be in the mood to return back to the Jasmine Dragon, so they had continued walking. At some point, neither of them were quite certain when, they realized their hands were laced with each other's and despite their shyness, they didn't let go for quite some time.

Before either of them knew it, the day had slipped into evening and a brilliant sunset was once again staining the sky. Reluctantly, the two set off for home, hand in hand. Aang was busy taking in everything around him, but Katara was more occupied watching the airbender. She realized she rather liked how protective the airbender was of her. There seemed to be an unusually large number of boys glancing at her as they threaded their way home and while their stares hardly affected her, the airbender would unintentionally glare at them and tighten his grip on her hand. Katara found the small frown that worked its way across his face adorable and nearly laughed every time she saw Aang glaring at some boy.

Their wanderings led them to a secluded area that housed a large fountain lit with candles. The sunset was reflected beautifully in the waters of the fountain and Katara's breath caught in her throat when she noticed it. The candles added a soft orange glow to the whole area and the few fireflies hovering about gave the place an ethereal feel. The airbender momentarily left her side and when he returned, he presented her with a flower.

"For you," he said, shyly.

Katara gave him a quick kiss. "Thanks, Aang. It's beautiful."

The airbender turned red and muttered something.

"What'd you say?" The waterbender asked.

Aang turned crimson and fidgeted. "I said, it's not as beautiful as you, but I guess hearing my say that is nothing new."

Katara blinked and gazed down at the flower, hoping the twilight hid her face, which she felt sure was a red as a tomato.

"Actually," she admitted. "No one's ever called me that before."

"Then they're all crazy."

Wordlessly, Katara threw her arms around him, smiling into his shoulder and trying to hold back a few tears of joy.

"I know we haven't even been together for a day," she said, her voice partially muffled by the fabric of his clothes. "But you're the best boyfriend ever."

"I don't know about that," the airbender replied, modestly. "But thanks."

By the time the Aang and Katara returned, Iroh was just closing the tea shop. A few lingering customers stared at the two when they entered and as one elderly gentlemen passed them on his way out, he glared at their intertwined hands and muttered something about commoners and disgrace. Aang frowned and squeezed Katara's hand in reassurance and the waterbender just gave him a small smile and a swift kiss, prompting Sokka to comment on their display of affection.

"Could you two at least try to keep the affection to a minimum while I'm around," the lanky warrior cried. "I'm in no mood to cough up my dinner."

Katara just rolled her eyes and slipped into her place between Toph and Aang.

"How was your date?" Toph wondered, grinning at the pair.

Sokka nearly choked on his noodles.

"Date?" He cried. "You never mentioned a date? I thought you two were just hanging out around the city."

"Isn't that usually what a date is?" Zuko wondered.

"Sokka wouldn't know," Toph teased.

"Of course I would," was Sokka's indignant response. "Suki and I have been on lots of dates."

"We have?" Suki laughed.

Sokka grumbled inaudibly under his breath and continued eating in silence while the others laughed.

When their evening meal was finished and Iroh's last customers had paid and left, Aang slipped out onto the balcony again. From the corner of her eye, Katara watched him leave and as soon as she'd helped Iroh with some of his chores, she set off to find the airbender. Much to her surprise, however, the balcony was deserted when she got there and Katara was surprised to discover how disappointed she was that the airbender wasn't there.

"Aang?" she called softly, glancing around to see just where he'd gone.

"Up here," came his response. Katara looked up to see the airbender perched on the roof and grinning. For reasons unknown to her, she felt herself flush and her heart seemed to beat faster.

"What're you doing up there?" She demanded.

"Nothing, really," he admitted, laughing.

"Want some company?"

"Sure."

"Then help me up, silly. I can't airbend."

Grinning, Aang airbent himself down and scooped her up and, before Katara could protest or had time to register what was going on, the airbender had landed them back on the roof.

"Uh, Aang?"

"Yeah?"

Katara flushed for what seemed like the millionth time that day. "You can let go of me now."

"Oh!" The airbender turned red and hurriedly released her from his arms. "Sorry."

Katara giggled and took a seat next to him, gazing at the crescent moon suspended in the inky black sky flecked with stars. For a few minutes, the two just stared out at the city that stretched endlessly before them before Katara scooted closer to the airbender and rested her head on his shoulder, realizing only belatedly what she'd done. Despite the butterflies in her stomach and the blush on her cheeks, she didn't move. She found she rather liked being close to Aang and she didn't really mind how many blushes or butterflies she had to endure.

"Thanks, Aang," she said drowsily, favoring him with a smile. "I really enjoyed our date."

"I'm glad," he replied, smiling back at her. "I know it wasn't really much of a date and we didn't do much besides walk, but…"

"It was perfect," Katara assured him. "I loved it."

Aang smiled, struck with the sudden realization he loved seeing Katara so happy and knowing he was the cause of it. Then and there he decided her smile was his favorite thing in the world and vowed to make her happy as often as he could.

"I'm glad Ozai didn't hurt you," Katara blurted out suddenly, lacing her fingers with his. "I don't know what I'd have done without you."

"Me either," Aang admitted, grateful the night hid the telltale blush on his face. He was glad Katara was safe because he wasn't so sure how he'd have managed without her. The idea seemed too depressing to entertain, so the airbender focused on pleasanter thoughts. He realized that he rather liked knowing he could make Katara blush and that he had the same effect on her that she had on him. But most of all, he loved knowing that his feelings weren't unrequited. It was, quite possibly, the best feeling in the world.

"Aang?"

Katara's voice drew the airbender out of his thoughts and he turned to face her, surprised to find her just inches away. A smile was etched across her face and her cerulean eyes held a note he'd never known them to possess before.

"Yeah?"

Katara smiled nervously and hesitated before continuing in a soft voice, so soft he almost had to strain to hear. "I love you."

Aang's eyes widened in surprise and he grinned, certain he must have looked like a fool then, but he hardly cared. Katara gave a nervous laugh and tucked a few loose strands of her hair away and the airbender was struck with a sudden desire to kiss her. Throwing all caution to the wind, and ignoring the nervous butterflies rearing up within, he leaned forward, closed the gap between them, and did just that. They may have been in an early stage in their relationship where everything seemed awkward but, despite any and all awkwardness, they both knew that this wasn't a fleeting crush. As lovely and scary as it seemed, they understood then the depth of their feelings for each other. Perhaps, they'd always known, had always assumed, but now they were certain. One simple kiss was enough to communicate how deeply they both loved each other, even if they were rather shy about admitting it just yet. And as they kissed, with the soft, silver moonlight shining gently down upon them, they realized that they craved more than just a lifetime together, whether as friends or something more. Perhaps, forever wasn't really long enough after all, but if they could spend it together, it'd be worth it.

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_As always, thank you so much to everyone who read, reviewed, and supported this story! You guys are the best! ^-^_

_~ Cassie_


	99. Eternal

_A/N: Act I: Cassidy is sentimental. ^^' Way back in December 2010 when I first started this collection, I was going to write about 10 oneshots and mark this story as completed because I figured, being fairly new to fanfiction, not many people would read my work and I wouldn't enjoy it to the extent I did. But then, I realized how much fun it was, so hence this long massive collection. I was planning on stopping at 100 chapters and working on some of my original pieces, but I think after posting Chapter 2, I realized how much fun writing fanfiction is and so I wrote as many fanfics as I could and now I have a wee little folder on my laptop with around fifty or so completed and uncompleted oneshots waiting to be written/posted. So, I am starting a new oneshot collection as soon as this is over because I have some pieces lying about on my computer, but if anyone thinks I should just keep adding to this, feel free to let me know! I'd love just adding to this and taking a shot at becoming the longest fanfiction in existence, but I don't think the readers would enjoy sifting through a massive collection, hehe. ^^' With that said, a HUGE thank you is very much in order! I can't believe how much support and feedback I've gotten for this collection and I wish I could just list everyone who's read, favorited, reviewed, etc, but I don't think I can without writing a book about all you wonderful, amazing people and how much it means to me. 8'D Thank you so much!_

_Act II: Cassidy is even more sentimental. ^^' I originally wrote this for a writing contest over on KF a while ago, so I've been meaning to post it for a while, but I've been busy and, with an exam a week until November, work and such, I figured if I don't post this now, I probably never will. XD Admittedly, this was challenging to write because I had to force myself not to abandon this fic because the subject matter is somewhat sad, but hopefully, in a happy sort of way...if that makes any sense at all. So, despite how sad it may (or may not) be, I hope it's alright and well,...please don't hate me for writing this. ^^' Happy readings!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything. _

* * *

**XCIX. Eternal**

_And it only hurts when I'm breathing  
My heart only breaks when it's beating  
My dreams only die when I'm dreaming  
So, I hold my breath to forget_

~ Shania Twain, It Only Hurts When I'm Breathing

There was a terrible finality to the closing of the bedroom door. Several pairs of eyes glanced up at the tired figure that emerged from the bed chamber and the wiry old healer shook her head, smoothing out her white hair. Her gaze rested on the small crowd assembled in front of the door: Sokka, a prominent member of Republic City's Council, Toph Bei Fong, Chief of Police, Master Kya, a renowned waterbender and healer, Commander Bumi, the ingenious leader of the United Forces, Master Tenzin, now the last airbender in existence, and Lin Bei Fong, Republic City's best police officer. The six stood huddled outside the door to the master suite and the Air Acolytes, having abandoned their duties for the time being, sat quietly in the adjacent courtyard and waited for the news. The old healer took everything in before her gaze came to rest on the six most anxious to hear the news. With great solemnity, she decreed the verdict.

"It is over."

The river of tears that began did not stop for some time and the world mourned the loss of Avatar Aang.

In the courtyard, the Air Acolytes bowed their heads in silence in honor of all Avatar Aang had done and hurried back to their rooms to give the select few that knew him intimately, their privacy. The wizened old healer hung her head and shuffled off to the side and waited for the last figure to emerge from the chamber.

"Well," Toph said gruffly, not bothering to wipe away the few tears that cascaded down her face. "Twinkle Toes just loves proving me wrong."

A round of sniffling ensued and Sokka nodded.

"He does, doesn't he?" The councilman said. He took a deep, shuddery breath and passed a hand over his face, as if everything had just sunk in. "What happened, Toph?"

The blind Chief of Police just shrugged, hastily swiping at a few tears. "I don't know. I always thought…I mean, I never imagined Aang would…at least not _this_ soon."

Kya's sobs grew more pronounced and her brothers huddled around her. It seemed hard to believe that just a short while ago, Avatar Aang had spoken to them all for the last time.

Sokka just nodded, rubbing at his eyes. "I always assumed he had more time and…" A strange, sad look crossed his face. "He's gone, Toph. He's really gone."

The blind earthbender gave him a weak punch. "D-don't say things like that," she snapped.

Sokka gave a weak smile and sniffed. "Don't tell me you're growing soft now, Toph."

Wordlessly, she punched him again.

"Can I?" Kya asked tentatively, reaching for the handle to the door. Sokka surveyed his niece and, amid his tears, offered what he hoped was a comforting smile.

"Let me," he said, and he pushed open the door the chamber and quickly closed it behind him.

The chamber was lit only by the light of the setting sun filtering in through the partially open windows. Katara knelt by the side of the bed, her thin frame shaking with sobs and her hands clasped around another adorned with a blue tattoo. Aang was reposing on the bed, his lips turned up in a peaceful smile, and to Sokka, it looked as if he was simply sleeping. The scene was almost too much for Sokka and it took nearly everything he had not to run out of the room. The healer had made everything perfectly clear and he'd understood the situation, that Aang wasn't coming back, but seeing his friend like this and knowing that the same hands Katara held would never bend again, or knowing that he'd never hear Aang speak or tease him again or he'd never smile at any of them again- it was all a little too much. But steeling himself and trying to be strong for his little sister, who he knew was probably feeling quite broken and hurt, he made his presence known.

"Katara?"

The waterbender jumped, startled at the sound of her name and lifted her tearstained gaze to meet Sokka's. Her cerulean eyes were glazed over in a thick layer of tears and she looked so broken, so tired, Sokka almost despaired of her ever being able to recover. But, he cast these gloomy thoughts aside and wordlessly knelt beside her sister, pulling her into a hug.

"It'll be okay, Katara," he said, gently.

She sobbed even harder at that. "His last words to me were, 'I'll always love you, Katara.'" She sniffed and pressed the heel of her palms into her eyes, trying to stop the never-ending stream of tears but failed miserably. "I've never hated the sound of my name so much."

"Why do you…?" Sokka began, but then he smiled softly in understanding. Even in death, Aang was terribly sentimental; Sokka was positive that it was no coincidence that his sister's name had been the last word the Avatar had uttered before passing. Understandably, Katara would link it to her husband's last words and it would cause her grief any time someone said it.

"He's gone, Sokka," she said, hollowly. She sounded so lost, so broken, it nearly sacred Sokka. It was a tone he remembered well. She'd said something very similar sixty years ago when their mother had passed. "He's really gone."

A gentle breeze rustled the curtains and Sokka gave a shaky laugh. "I don't think he'd leave you so easily, Katara." She flinched at the sound of her name and Sokka made a mental note to avoid using it for a couple of days. "If anything, his spirit is probably hovering over you like a leech."

Katara gave him a watery smile, but her sobbing didn't stop.

"Everyone's waiting for you outside," he said, attempting to pull her out of the room. He wasn't sure about her, but he thought another minute in the suddenly dreary chamber with a lifeless Aang would be enough to drive him crazy. He needed to go out and Katara needed to as well. But the waterbender shook her head vigorously and buried her face in her hands.

"I can't face them all," she cried, her voice slightly muffled. "Please don't make me face them."

"But Kya, Bumi, and Tenzin are waiting to see you. They need you."

"They need someone to be strong for them and I can't be," she whispered. "Not yet."

"You think you're the only one that misses him?" Sokka asked, gently. "We all do. He was my brother, Katara."

"You don't understand," she wept. "Aang was everything to me and now he's gone. I have nothing and everything worth living for."

Sokka drew in a sharp breath. "What are you talking about?"

"I don't want to live," she whispered. Sokka went pale and opened his mouth to speak, but Katara continued. "And I don't want to die, either. I don't know what I want anymore or what to do or…" She broke off weeping and Sokka's embrace around her tightened.

"I can only guess what you're feeling," he said. "But you still have us, Katara." She sniffed and Sokka proudly noted she hadn't flinched this time. "We'll get through this together like we always have."

Katara nodded mechanically and allowed Sokka to help her up and lead her out. The minute her children saw her, she was practically assaulted with hugs and it wasn't long before all of them, Toph, Sokka, and Lin included, were kneeling on the floor sobbing and trying to comfort each other. The sadness and grief were palpable; they hung heavy and thick in the air until it seemed like a perpetual cloud of sadness hung over Air Temple Island. But, Katara seemed to have stepped up once again, because amid all the tears, she vowed that things would get better.

"We'll get through this together," she whispered, glancing at Sokka who nodded in affirmation. "I promise."

The funeral rites were duly performed, but Katara didn't remember much of it. She'd been crying too hard to really pay much attention, but as the funeral pyre was lit, she was conscious of the gentle breeze blowing around them. It caressed her skin and tossed her hair about, and if she concentrated hard enough, it was as if she could hear Aang's laugh and feel his hands gently running through her hair. That only made her weep harder and it wasn't too long before the whole ceremony has finished and all Katara could remember of it, was her tears.

That night, Katara cried herself to sleep for the first time in many years. Aang's side of the bed remained empty and Katara buried her face in his pillow and pulled his sheets over her, inhaling his familiar scent and trying to remember the feel of his arms wrapped protectively around her, the way he'd brush her hair out of her eyes and kiss her good morning. But the memories, sharp as they, weren't nearly enough and she spent the whole night in a cycle of waking and weeping while her three children sat huddled outside her locked door and listened to their mother weep. It seemed as if things couldn't get any worse, but the following morning, Katara was in a trance-like state, wondering why no one had bothered to set Aang's place at the breakfast table or why Aang was tarrying and just what was keeping him. For two days, she carried on like that, incessantly worrying her brother and her children and even Toph who had taken to following the waterbender around so she didn't try anything rash.

"Maybe I won't make stewed sea prunes," Katara said, one evening as she and Toph stood in the kitchen. "Aang doesn't like them."

"Katara…"

"I don't suppose he'd like vegetable soup again; we just had the yesterday and he's probably tired of it." She handed Toph some plates and smiled.

"Would you mind setting the table, Toph? Aang should be home any minute now."

Casting a worried glance at Sokka who had just entered the kitchen, Toph nodded and hurried to set the dinner table.

On the third morning, it seemed as if the hallucinations had stopped, for the entire household was rudely awakened by the sound of china shattering and they found Katara in the kitchen, weeping uncontrollably among the remains of the china. She spent some time huddled on the kitchen floor crying, before she pulled herself together and hurriedly prepared breakfast and spent the rest of the day doing housework. On the fourth day after Aang's passing, Appa faithfully followed his master and three days later, Sokka had discovered Momo, who had been curled up on Aang's pillow, had passed away in his sleep too. More tears were shed, but thankfully Katara didn't worsen. The residents of Air Temple Island often found the waterbender immersed in work and such and if at all she wasn't, she was often seen wandering the grounds of the island or the corridors of the Temple muttering "Death is an illusion."

It was, Sokka explained to the others, Katara's way of coping. She was strong, but only time would heal her. But her behavior in the weeks following Aang's death was decidedly odd. Sometimes, she would surround herself with memories of Aang and other times, she would distance herself from them. No one could make heads or tails out of it. Some days, she would sit at Aang's place at the table and drink tea from the cup he always used, spend hours cooped up in his study reading all his books and his journals and other days, she would sit at the farthest end of the table, away from Aang's place, use nothing that reminded her of him and spend hours avoiding all the places he was known to frequent. Some nights, she'd sleep curled up on Aang's side of the bed, resting her head on his pillow and using his sheets and other times, she'd haunt one of the many guest chambers, trying to avoid anything that reminded her of him altogether. Kya and Bumi had been so worried about her, they'd put off their departure and spent all their time with Tenzin, keeping an eye on Katara.

And it seemed to Kya, one evening as she walked about the grounds of the island, that her mother definitely needed someone to watch her. Kya had simply been going for an evening stroll when she saw her mother ascend the steps of the pavilion on the highest point of the island. Katara spent a minute gazing out at the waters of Yue Bay before placing her feet between the railings of the banister and wrapping her arms around a pillar, hoisting herself up so she was a little higher.

"Mother, don't!" Kya screamed, running up to Katara and pulling her back. "Please don't do it." She begged, hugging Katara.

"Do what?" Katara asked, blankly.

"Don't jump," her daughter said, sobbing softly and clinging to her mother. "You were going to, weren't you?"

"Kya…"

"Is it because of something we did?" Kya wondered. "Did Tenzin or I say something that upset you? Or…"

"Kya…"

"I promise we'll fix whatever we did, just please don't jump. " Kya begged, burying her face in the fabric of Katara's dress as if she were a little girl again. "We need you."

Katara, for the first time since Aang's passing, gave a soft laugh. "Don't be so melodramatic, Kya," her mother laughed, stroking her hair. "I wasn't going to jump."

"You weren't," Kya asked, mildly surprised. "But you were climbing the… and…"

Katara smiled softly. "No, I wasn't. I'd never hear the end of it if I did and if I succeeded. Your father would spend the rest of eternity teasing me. 'You'd have been at Tenzin's wedding, Katara, if only you hadn't jumped,' or 'you'd have seen your grandkids if only you hadn't jumped, Katara.'"

Kya laughed at Katara's imitations of Aang.

"Did you honestly think I was desperate enough to jump?" Katara wondered.

"Yes," Bumi said meekly, coming to join them. Behind him, Tenzin gave a sheepish smile.

"We heard Kya," he explained. "Mother…"

"Oh, please don't worry about me," Katara said. "I promise I won't do anything foolish."

"Every since Dad passed you've been different," Kya said. "We just wanted to make sure…"

"Of course I've been different," Katara said, sadly. "Your father was everything to me; we went through so much together and…" She trailed off and sighed. "He promised me forever and yet…"

"Maybe we should go in?" Bumi suggested. "You haven't had your evening tea yet Mother."

"Aang always liked tea," Katara said, a faraway look in her eyes. "His favorite was jasmine, because the Jasmine Dragon was where we first…where I first…" She trialed off and sighed, absently twirling a strand of her brown hair. "I miss him."

"We all do," Tenzin said softly, gazing out at the horizon.

"I think," Katara said slowly. "I think I'd like to go back to the South Pole. I need a change of scenery."

"But who will run the Temple?" Tenzin demanded.

"I think you know the answer," Katara said, smiling softly.

"But…"

"I won't leave for some time," she said. "But I have to leave or I don't think I'll ever heal."

Admittedly, it was two years before Katara actually relocated to the Southern Water Tribe but visits to Air Temple Island were quite frequent. She came and went often and seemed to have healed almost completely by the second year. She no longer broke down when anyone mentioned Aang's name nor did she weep when she thought of him or did anything that was reminiscent of him. And so, the seasons passed, continuing their never ending cycle. In the years that followed, Tenzin got married, Sokka and Toph, and many of her friends passed, she was reunited with Aang through a certain waterbending Avatar and she was blessed with three airbending grandchildren and possibly a fourth to come. The years went on and Katara grew older, wiser, and eventually weaker. It wasn't too long before she welcomed the inevitable.

Her final hours were spent with her family and friends huddled close by her side and while they wept, she merely smiled and laughed, offering them the same advice she had been given and nearly forgotten after Aang's death.

"Death," she quoted, smiling. "Is only an illusion. We won't be apart for long."

A few hours later, as she breathed her last, the world fell silent.

When she awoke again, she laughed in delight, glancing at her wrinkle-free skin, her brown hair and her young, slender figure. Being old wasn't so bad, but she much preferred this age to being old with aches and pains. Death had whisked her away from the snowy plains of the South Pole and deposited her in the rolling, grassy hills of the ethereal Spirit World, and she spent some time drinking in all her surroundings, before her gaze fell upon a certain airbender standing a few yards away with a smile plastered on his face.

"Aang!"

Laughing in delight, Katara ran up to him (how thrilling to be able to run again!) and threw her arms around him. She nearly cried when she felt his arms snake around her and pull her closer, and felt the gentle pressure of his warm lips against hers and his hands running gently through her hair, but her pure joy kept the tears at bay.

"I missed you," she whispered, smiling up at him. "Tell me this isn't a dream."

"It isn't. Your dreams were never this good, were they?" he asked, cheekily. He laughed when Katara playfully hit him and smiled. "To be honest, I don't care if this is a dream or not. You held out for so long, I thought I'd have to wait a hundred more years to see you again."

"Well, I'm here now," Katara said, simply.

Aang grinned and Katara leaned up to kiss him once more.

"Come on," he said, lacing his fingers with hers. "There are some people who are very anxious to see you." And smiling, he led her off into the depths of the Spirit World.

In the corporeal world, Katara's small house was blanketed in silence as her friends and family watched the dying embers of the funeral pyre. They remained in silence for a good long while until Kya directed their attention outside. Beyond the confines of the snug, little house a storm was brewing. The South Seas were roiling and a fierce wind was howling. The waves that battered the icy shore rose in height and the wind howled to greet them. The storm raged for a little over two days, one hour for every year Katara and Aang had been together, Pema explained to her children when they asked why the storm was raging so long. A strange look crossed Tenzin's face and he exchanged glances with his siblings.

"Perhaps," Kya said, wiping away a few tears and smiling at her brothers and her sister-in-law. "Perhaps it is so."

On the final day, a massive waterspout rose from the ocean, a swirling column of water and air working together in harmony, and the three siblings just watched it rise until it disappeared from sight. Shortly afterwards, the storm broke and at the horizon, where air and water met, a beautiful sunrise stained the sky.

"You don't think that was…?" Bumi began, glancing at his siblings.

"It could be," Tenzin mused, a hint of a smile playing across his lips.

"I wouldn't put it past them," Kya said, smiling and laughing a little. "Perhaps it's their way of letting us know they're still here and with us, that they're always watching over us."

And from somewhere in the spirit world, as the sunrise painted the sky with vibrant colors, Katara and Aang smiled.

* * *

It is said, that from the eddies and by the bubbling creeks, where the boughs of willows skim the water's surface, to the high mountains where the cold, crisp breeze rustles the chimes of old, forgotten temples, water and air are locked in a eternal dance, constantly working together destroying, building, and sustaining. And, if you listen hard enough, it is said you just might hear them laugh and dance as two have laughed and danced before them.

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_A/N: I hope it wasn't too bad. ^^' Originally, since I started with a piece set shortly after the series finale, I was going to post this as the last chapter to this collection, but I figured I should end on a lighter note. ^-^ Anyway, I'm sure after the long A/N at the beginning, no one wants to read this again, but thank you so much to everyone who read, reviewed and/or supported this collection in any and every way. It means a lot to me! 8'D_

_~Cassie_


	100. Forever and For Always

_A/N: Whoohoo! Chapter 100! _o(^-^)o_ I know it's been a while since I updated, but things have been rather hectic lately, so I didn't get much of a chance to finish working on this and post it until now. XDD This was a piece I had originally planned way back when this collection had less than 10 chapters and it was modified and written for Kataang Week 2012, but I've modified it again since then and posted it here. Admittedly, I'm a little sad to be marking this collection as complete, because working on it has been so incredibly fun, but I am starting a new oneshot collection ASAP, so I'll still have somewhere to post all my oneshots. If anyone still has requests, feel free to send them to me; I'll make note of them and add them to my new oneshot collection once I start it. ^-^_

_Now that I'm (somewhat) done being sentimental, a HUGE thank you is very much in order. I'm still a bit baffled by all the support and feedback I've gotten, because I don't quite know what I did to deserve such amazing followers! 8') Thank you all so much to everyone who read, reviewed and/or supported this collection in any and every way. I can't tell you how grateful I am and how much it means to me! You're all amazing!_

_~Cassidy Alice_

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything, including the title (of both the collection, as mentioned before, and this particular oneshot) which was inspired by Shania Twain's lovely song of the same name. ^^_

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**C. Forever and For Always**

_And there ain't no way I'm letting you go now  
And there ain't no way and there ain't no how  
I'll never see that day, _

_'cause I'm keeping you forever and for always  
We will be together all of our days  
Wanna wake up every morning to your sweet face- always_

~ Shania Twain, Forever and For Always

A warm, golden sunlight was pouring into the room, when Katara woke up. Flopping back against the soft mattress, Katara glanced out the window, watching the sunlight dance in patches across the floor of their room, as a gentle breeze from a partially open window rustled the curtains. Beside her, Aang was sleeping peacefully, no doubt tired after last night's events and Katara couldn't help smiling, recalling the wonderful wedding and reception they'd had the night before. Everything had gone off according to plan and the night had been more wonderful than she had ever imagined. But now, alone at their small island cottage, the reality of it all seemed to hit her. She and Aang were _married_. She laughed to herself, just thinking about it. Next to her, Aang stirred and sat up, rubbing his eyes drowsily and trying to make sense of what Katara was doing.

"Is something wrong?" He wondered, yawning and giving her a sleepy smile. Katara just gazed up at him before tackling him in a hug, causing him to fall back on the soft mattress.

"We're married," she laughed, her voice muffled by the fabric of his robes.

Aang just hummed, wrapping his arms around her and smiling. "Did you think it was a dream?" he wondered.

She shook her head, strands of her hair tickling his skin.

"No, but it seems so surreal," she said, smiling up at him. "I dreamed of this day ever since we got engaged, but this is so much better than what I envisioned it to be."

Aang simply nodded, yawning in content again.

Katara laughed, wriggling out of his grip and rushing to change out of her nightgown and into her everyday clothes. Ten minutes later, she was refreshed and ready, and Aang raised an eyebrow upon seeing her.

"Going somewhere?" He asked.

She nodded, hurriedly brushing her hair. "To make breakfast," she explained. "You sleep in. I'll call you when it's ready."

Aang grinned and simply flopped back down, grinning to himself as he thought about everything that had happened. Their wedding the day before had been wonderful; the ceremony had gone off flawlessly and they'd spent several happy hours celebrating with family and friends at the reception. As Katara had said, it seemed surreal to think that they were married now. They'd been fantasizing about it for the longest time, but now that "someday" had come, it almost seemed too good to be true. Just thinking about Katara and knowing that she was his forever as he was hers, made him feel giddy with excitement.

In the kitchen, Katara was experiencing much of the same sensation. Her hands twitched with the faintest of tremors as she prepared their breakfast and she kept laughing to herself. She'd imagined that being married would feel wonderful but she felt elated beyond comparison. There was simply no way to describe how she was feeling that didn't require her using every word synonymous to overjoyed. And as she prepared their morning meal, she reveled in how positively wonderful she was feeling. But as soon as breakfast was ready and the table set, she suddenly felt nervous. Staring at the meal laid out on the table before her, Katara was suddenly unsure if it would be suitable for Aang. The airbender wasn't a picky eater and he enjoyed everything she made but suddenly she was worried that her cooking had failed her and perhaps she'd forgotten a certain ingredient or added too much of another. So, by the time Aang had gotten ready and wandered to the kitchen to see what his young wife was up to, Katara had whipped up several new dishes and was in the process of making another. She was furiously stirring something and adding something into the mix every now and then, muttering under her breath. Aang watched her for a minute before making his presence known to her.

"Katara, what're you doing?"

The waterbender yelped in fright and nearly dropped the bowl in the process.

"Aang, I didn't see you," she said, grinning sheepishly as he wiped some flour off of him that she'd tossed in the process.

"So I noticed," he laughed. His eyes wandered over the small kitchen and he glanced back at Katara. "What's all this?"

Katara followed his gaze and bit her lip, observing the mess she'd created.

"I'm so sorry it's such a mess. I'll clean it up, I promise," She said hurriedly, worried that the airbender may have been just the slightest bit upset. "I was just trying to make breakfast and…"

"It's alright, Katara," he laughed. "I was just wondering what you were doing."

"I may have gone a little overboard," she admitted, surveying the five or six dishes she'd prepared. "I didn't know which one you'd like, so…" She trailed off, leaning against the counter but failed to notice the flour bowl teetering over the edge. It fell to the ground and for a split second, the kitchen was filled with flour. When it had all settled, Katara was staring at the scene in horror. Moaning in frustration, she sank to her knees and began cleaning.

"I'm sorry," she apologized.

Aang knelt before her. "For what?" He wondered, helping her clean up the mess.

"It's not even lunchtime and I managed to mess things up. This day was supposed to be perfect."

Aang chuckled, wiping some flour off her face and giving her a quick kiss. "It is perfect," he said, helping her up. "And the day isn't over."

"But I ruined breakfast already," Katara grumbled. "I guess I don't know how to be a good wife."

"That's not true and you know it," Aang laughed. "You're the best wife ever and you haven't ruined everything." He gently pulled her out of the kitchen and towards the table where their breakfast awaited.

"Sorry," she said, as they seated themselves and began eating. "I guess I just got carried away. I was worried you wouldn't like any of this, so I just kept making more dishes."

"You know I like anything you make," Aang said. "So don't worry about it."

"Easier said than done," Katara said. "I don't know how to be a wife; I never had much of an example to follow, considering my mother died when I was so young."

"You don't have to be anyone but yourself," Aang said, smiling at her. "Besides, it's just me."

Katara smiled back. "But doesn't it feel just the slightest bit weird?" she wondered. "I mean, it's as if nothing has changed and yet everything has."

"Yeah, but it doesn't feel weird to me."

Katara simply laughed. "So, what's on the agenda today?" She wondered.

Aang's eyes twinkled. "You'll see."

Katara raised an eyebrow inquiringly but didn't question him. As soon as breakfast was over and the table cleared, Aang took her hand and led her outside. The small cottage they were staying in was located on an elevated island, nearby former Earth Kingdom colonies, formed by several cliffs converging to form a grassy plateau of sorts and littered with trees that formed a small forest. It was too small for a city, but too big for just the two of them, but made the perfect spot for a honeymoon. Their cottage was a modest little house, safe and snug, and afforded them a stunning view. The forest bordered the house along the back and continued on until a certain location, at which point it gave way to the cliffs that comprised most of the island. From the front of the cottage and from their bedroom, Aang and Katara could discern the sea and had their own private beach to enjoy, further down. Along one side of the island, a piece of land jutted out and curved inward, providing them with a private lagoon and a small inlet perfect for bathing and swimming. It was to this lagoon, the young Avatar led his wife and they spent the morning and the better part of the afternoon, swimming in the lagoon and walking along the sandy beach before having a picnic lunch in the grassy plain that stretched out before the house. After finishing their lunch and relaxing for a bit, they spent the rest of the evening exploring the island. An hour before sunset, Aang took Katara to one of the highest points of the island, where the forest that ran along the tall cliff side towards the back of the island gave way to a small clearing that jutted out a little from the island. From there, they could see the ocean stretching endlessly for miles and the jagged peaks of two twin mountains marking regions of the Earth Kingdom not too far away. They spent the evening in the clearing, having a candlelight dinner and simply talking about anything and everything. As soon as their meal had finished, Aang instructed Katara to close her eyes.

"I have a surprise," he said. Katara closed her eyes and didn't open them until she felt something light in her outstretched hand. She gaped at the scroll in her hand and then at her husband.

"A scroll? My surprise is a scroll?"

"Open it," Aang instructed.

Katara did as she was told and was somewhat amused to find a beautifully drawn sketch of an island, not unlike the one they were on currently. In the sketch, the island was clearly inhabited, as a long dock extended out from the private beach and a few boats were sketched idling in the waters. From the docks, a long a path zigzagged upwards towards a plateau. At the center of the plateau, a tower, reminiscent of the towers of the Air Temples rose upwards to great heights. A large house that consisted of several wings was drawn to the left of the tower and to the right, some unidentified buildings and a large open area decorated with the yin-yang symbols. Upon further inspection, Katara noticed that the strange markings around the large yin-yang symbol were meant to be steps and the area was to be an amphitheater of sorts. The entire island seemed like some place out of a fairytale and Katara turned her gaze to Aang.

"Why'd you show me this?"

"Do you like it?" He wondered.

"It's beautiful," Katara admitted.

"How would you like to live there?" Aang asked, grinning at her.

"On an island as big as this?" She demanded, gesturing to the one in the drawing. "I mean, I'd love to, but where is this island?"

"It doesn't exist yet."

"Doesn't exist yet?" she echoed. "Aang, what're you talking about?"

"This island in the sketch is based off of this island. It's actually a blueprint for our future home."

"Future home?" Katara parroted.

Aang nodded. "Sokka and I were talking the other day, and we think this place is perfect for us to live."

"Live?" Katara said. "But why here?"

Aang flicked his gaze towards the twin peaks that towered over the bay that separated the island from the mainland.

"The location for Republic City has finally been decided," he explained.

"And?" Katara prodded.

"It's here," he said, pointing to the piece of land that jutted out from the mainland into the bay. "Once construction starts, I'll probably need to start coming here more often. It'll be so much harder on you if we keep travelling back and forth if we lived elsewhere and the last thing I want is to leave you behind for months at a time while I'm here. I figured, if we lived here, we wouldn't have to be apart for so long."

Katara glanced at the drawing again and smiled. "Did Sokka draw this?"

Aang laughed. "His art skills haven't improved much since we were kids."

Katara laughed. "I'd love to live here, Aang. As long as I'm with you, I don't mind where we live."

Aang grinned. "It'll be nice once we have a bigger house here. See this little piece of land?" he asked, pointing to a small outcropping. Katara nodded. "That's where we are now. It thought it'd make a nice spot for a meditation pavilion."

Katara glanced at their surroundings. The sky was a vibrant mix of reds and pinks, stained in various places by hues of orange, blue, and purple. The waters of the bay sparkled in the sunset and Katara smiled.

"It's perfect for a pavilion," she said, drinking in the beautiful scenery around her.

"I also thought about maybe converting the place to a temple of sorts. It'd be lonely here with just the two of us, but if we made it a temple, the Air Acolytes could live here and I could continue to teach people the ways of the Air Nomads so my culture and heritage wouldn't die with me."

"That's a wonderful idea," Katara exclaimed, taking his hands. "We should do it."

"It'd require a lot of work," Aang admitted. "And we'd have to make sure the Acolytes are willing to do this, but it seems possible."

Katara laughed. "I'm sure we can make it happen. And who knows? In a few years, maybe there'll be little airbenders running around here."

"Or waterbenders," Aang said, pulling her to him. Katara settled into his embrace and sighed.

"Do you want children?" She asked, tentatively.

He nodded in affirmation. "Not just because I'm the last airbender, but because I like children. And I want whatever makes you happy and, even though we haven't really talked about it, I know you've always wanted to start a family."

Katara nodded. "I have. And I'm sure this place would seem so much brighter than it already is if we had kids running around."

Aang nodded, laughing with her. "It would."

For a while, the two fell silent, watching the sunset fade as a multihued twilight blanketed the skies. Katara shifted beside Aang and rested her head on his shoulder.

"What if none of our children are airbenders?" She wondered, feeling his hold on her tighten.

"It's not your job to bring them back," Aang replied, planting a kiss on her forehead.

"I know that, silly, but I'm being realistic. What if we don't have any airbenders? What're we going to do?"

"What can we do?" Aang wondered. "I'm not leaving you to 'try my chances with other women.' That's not an option, so I guess there's not much we can do. The monks used to say the world will always find balance in the end, so if airbending is destined to survive, I guess it will, regardless of whether or not we have any kids who can airbend. Besides, I'd love them regardless of what they can or can't bend."

Katara simply held him tighter. "I am so glad I married you."

Aang chuckled and they fell back into a comfortable silence, watching the moon rise in the star-studded sky and listening to the peaceful sounds of the waves lapping against the shore.

"Seems hard to believe how far we've come, doesn't it?" Katara wondered. "It seems like just yesterday Sokka and I found you in that iceberg and you were asking me to go penguin sledding."

Aang hummed in agreement. "It does. Seems hard to believe our adventures are over. But, in a way, I guess we'll be having new adventures."

"Nothing like being chased all over the world by Zuko or landing ourselves in scrapes," Katara laughed.

"Or racing against time," the airbender added, laughing softly. "To be honest, I'll kind of miss those adventures. I wonder if the future will be half as exciting."

Katara shrugged. "I don't really know, but with you, I'm sure it's bound to be. After all, we'll have new adventures like you said."

"Yeah, but how many times will we be able to travel the world again and travel like we used to?"

"Not very often, I guess," Katara admitted. "But, I'm sure there will other adventures. Newer and different ones that are just as enjoyable, right?"

"Right." He replied, smiling lightly.

Katara sighed wistfully and ran a hand through her hair.

"Aang?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you ever think forever isn't long enough?" Katara asked, fiddling with strands of her hair.

"All the time," the airbender admitted. "When I'm with you, I feel like forever really isn't long enough to enjoy everything life has to offer."

Katara smiled, grateful that the night hid the telltale blush on her face. It was heartening to know that he craved more than forever with her as she craved with him.

"Do you think things will always be this wonderful, this perfect?" Katara asked at length, nestling deeper into him despite the warm night. "Do you think we'll always be this happy?"

"Are you scared we won't?" the airbender wondered, smiling down at her. He felt Katara shrug beside him and chuckled. "I really don't know what the future will be like. I can't promise it won't be full of ups and downs; there's bound to be challenges and hardships. But we'll face them together, like we always have."

Katara simply hummed in agreement.

"But I can promise one thing," Aang said, smiling and leaning down to kiss her.

"What?" the waterbender demanded, gazing up at him with a hauntingly beautiful smile dancing on her lips.

"I'll always love you."

"Forever?" Katara wondered, thinking about how right this all felt.

"Forever," Aang promised. "And for always."

_I'm keeping you forever and for always._

_I'm in your arms._

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_**The End**_


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